'I've also developed this fantasy of captaining team' - Temba Bavuma expresses his desire to play IPL

Proteas limited-overs skipper Temba Bavuma said he desires to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at a point in time and wishes to lead one of the franchises at the cash-rich event. Bavuma was named South Africa’s white-ball captain after Quinton de Kock stepped down from the role. He will be leading his national side in the forthcoming tour of India for the five-match T20Is starting June 9.

Bavuma has emerged as a prolific batter across all formats. He made his international debut in the Test format when he played against the West Indies and has gone on to amass 2612 runs in 51 Test matches so far. He also has 722 runs in 19 ODIs and 501 runs from 21 T20Is. His consistent performances for the side made him come out as the captaincy candidate.

“I would like to play there. The stronger my performances, the more realistic the opportunity becomes. I’ve also developed this fantasy of captaining a team. I don’t know where that comes from. I’d like to get that experience as well. But I kinda need to get into a team before that happens!” Bavuma told Cricket Monthly.

The Bavuma-led squad arrived in Delhi ahead of the first game at the Arun Jaitley Stadium which is scheduled on June 9 (Thursday). While India looks to extend their 12 T20Is winning streak and create a world record, South Africa will be geared up to face the No. 1 ranked T20I side and break their streak. The two teams last met for a three-match Test series and three-match ODI series that South Africa won by 2-1 and 3-0 respectively.

It’s nice to see some of our guys doing well in IPL: Temba Bavuma

Many of the players from the South African and Indian squads were seen in the recently concluded IPL 2022. The Proteas players were really impressive during their stint this season. Kagiso Rabada, Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram, Anrich Nortje, and Marco Jansen among others were some of the players who played at the IPL and will be seen in the upcoming series. Bavuma also shared his opinion on these players’ performances in the tournament.

“It’s nice to see some of our guys doing well. KG (Kagiso Rabada) is en route to being the quickest to 100 wickets. That’s something to be proud of. And Marco Jansen — how he has gone and performed. Or Aiden (Markram) And even the younger guys who have shown their ability. There is a lot of talk about Dewald Brevis. He is an exciting prospect for our cricket. And Tristan Stubbs, getting a go. It’s been nice to see those guys,” he added.