Zimbabwe Playing 11 vs South Africa- 1st Test, South Africa tour of Zimbabwe 2025
Published - 27 Jun 2025, 03:56 PM | Updated - 27 Jun 2025, 04:00 PM
Table of Contents
Zimbabwe will take on South Africa in the first of the two-match Test series. This article provides details about Zimbabwe's Playing 11 vs South Africa for the first match of the series.
Zimbabwe Playing 11 vs South Africa- 1st Test, South Africa tour of Zimbabwe 2025:
Openers: Craig Ervine (c), Brian Bennett
Zimbabwe will open the innings with the opening pair of captain Craig Ervine and Brian Bennett in the first Test against South Africa.
Ervine will look to lead from the front and would like to convert start into nig score to guide the team to a decent total.
Craig Ervine will be partnered by Brian Bennett, who is coming on the back of a century in the four-day Test against England last month, and would hope to keep up the good work in the first Test against South Africa.
The duo would hope to lay a platform for the middle-order batters to capitalize on as the match progresses.
Having said that, both batters would also want other batters to contribute although there is not much expierence in the middle order, which can be a cause of concern for the home team.
Ervine and Bennett will have to do the bulk of the scoring for the team due to the above-mentioned fact.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Sean Williams, Nicholas Welch, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Clive Madande (wk), Wessly Madhevere
The opening pair will be followed by a relatively inexperienced middle order with the likes of Nicholas Welch, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, wicketkeeper batter Clive Madande, all of whom haven't played a great deal of Test cricket.
The responsibility in such a scenario will be on the shoulders of Sean Williams, who is the most experienced middle-order batter.
Williams will be supported by all-rounder Wessly Madhevere, who will look to hold one end and help Williams guide Zimbabwe to a challenging total.
The hosts would also wish for their batters to post a total of 350-370 runs while batting first to give the WTC winners, South Africa, a tough competition on the field.
Bowlers: Vincent Masekesa, Blessing Muzarabani, Tanaka Chivanga, Trevor Gwandu
Zimbabwe is expected to go into the match against South Africa in Bulawayo with three out-and-out fast bowlers in the form of Blessing Muzarabani, Tanaka Chivanga, and Trevor Gwandu.
As far as the fourth fast bowler is concerned, the hosts have the services of leg break bowler Vincent Masekesa and the part-time spin of Sean Williams.
One of the decisions that the team management will have to make will be regarding the number of spinners that they would like to play in the first game, as the pitch is expected to be on the drier side.
If the Craig Ervine-led side decides to go in with two genuine spinners, then they can include Wellington Masakadza in the playing XI and drop either a batter or a fast bowler.
Also Read: South Africa Playing 11 vs Zimbabwe- 1st Test, South Africa tour of Zimbabwe 2025
Tagged:
Zimbabwe National Cricket Team South Africa National Cricket Team Zimbabwe vs South Africa South Africa vs Zimbabwe Craig Ervine Keshav Maharaj ICC World Test Championship
