IND vs SA: Temba Bavuma becomes 1st South Africa captain to complete huge milestone in WTC
Temba Bavuma became the first South African captain to achieve a huge feat in the World Test Championship (WTC) with his 41-run knock in the 2nd Test against India in Guwahati.
Temba Bavuma achieved a huge feat on Saturday as he became the first South Africa captain to complete 1,000 runs in the World Test Championship (WTC). Bavuma achieved the feat en route to his 41-run knock in his side's first innings of the second Test against India at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati.
Bavuma now has 1010 runs in 12 matches at an average of over 52 in the World Test Championship. A total of six players have led South Africa in the WTC so far, however, Bavuma is the only one to have crossed the 1,000-run mark as captain of the side. Overall, Bavuma is the 9th captain to complete 1,000 runs in the WTC.
Players with most runs in World Test Championship:
| PLAYER | TEAM | MATCHES | RUNS | BEST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Root | England | 32 | 2835 | 228 |
| Dimuth Karunaratne | Sri Lanka | 24 | 2160 | 244 |
| Kraigg Brathwaite | West Indies | 32 | 1994 | 160 |
| Ben Stokes | England | 34 | 1949 | 155 |
| Babar Azam | Pakistan | 18 | 1725 | 196 |
| Virat Kohli | India | 22 | 1349 | 254* |
| Rohit Sharma | India | 24 | 1254 | 131 |
| Kane Williamson | New Zealand | 13 | 1056 | 251 |
| Temba Bavuma | South Africa | 12 | 1010* | 172 |
| Shan Masood | Pakistan | 14 | 953 | 151 |
Since the inception of the World Test Championship in 2019, six players, including the likes of Dean Elgar, Faf du Plessis and Aiden Markram, have led the Proteas in Tests. Elgar led the team in 16 matches, the most by a South African in the competition so far. Bavuma has so far led the Proteas in 12 matches in the WTC and is yet to lose a game as captain.
The South Africa skipper, who shone with his unbeaten half-century in the series opener against India in Kolkata, continued his fine form in the 2nd Test in Guwahati on Saturday. Bavuma scored a valuable 41 and combined with Tristan Stubbs (49) to share an important 84-run stand for the third wicket for South Africa.
Bavuma is currently the leading run-getter in the ongoing Test series between India and South Africa with 99 runs in three innings of the two Tests so far at an average of 49.50. Bavuma was the only batter to score a half-century in the first Test in Kolkata, where batters from both teams struggled for runs. He scored an unbeaten 55 in South Africa's second innings at the Eden Gardens, which proved to be the difference between the two sides in the game.