The Proteas Test and ODI captain was the last pick in the SA20 Season 5 Player Auction when Capitals assistant coach Shaun Pollock raised his paddle to pick up the experienced top-order batter for his base price.
New Pretoria Capitals recruit Temba Bavuma says it’s “quite cool” to be calling Centurion home in SA20 Season 5. Bavuma has not featured in the competition since the second edition, when he played for the Sunrisers Eastern Cape, helping drive the Gqeberha-based team to two titles.
“Yeah, that’s quite cool,” Bavuma said of his Capitals signing. “I was looking forward to my January break. But yeah, it’s cool to be back in the mix with the guys.
I think he’s a different cricketer than he was 18 months ago,” the former Proteas captain said.
“Temba has probably been the most consistent player in one-day and Test matches for South Africa over the last two years,” Smith said. “Not too far from home, Pretoria, led by Keshav [Maharaj] over there. So yeah, I look forward to being a part of that team. Hopefully, we’ll be able to go all the way this year, next year. Pollock was particularly excited to acquire someone of Bavuma’s calibre and experience to guide a young Capitals squad. “I think Temba’s game has changed. League Commissioner Graeme Smith was equally thrilled to have the national captain participating in SA20 again. “And I hope that he has a cracking tournament and plays well and puts to bed all the T20 stuff that’s built up over the years and plays the way that he’s played in other formats. So, yeah, it’s going to be great to have the national captain as part of SA20,” Smith added.
