Temba Bavuma, the South Africa limited-overs captain, has been ruled out of the remainder of the ongoing series in Sri Lanka after suffering a fracture in his right thumb during the first ODI on Thursday. In his absence, Keshav Maharaj will lead the side for the second and third fixtures of the three-match ODI series.
Bavuma, who will return to South Africa as soon as possible to consult a specialist, took a blow to the thumb during the 26th over of South Africa's chase in the series opener on Thursday when, after pushing the ball to midwicket, he was attempting to avoid the fielder's throw. He took his glove off immediately, which revealed some blood and swelling, and received on-field attention for several minutes and continued batting, but not for long.
At that stage, Bavuma and Aiden Markram had shared in a 106-run second-wicket stand. Bavuma eventually retired hurt on a 53-ball 38 after the completion of the 28th over because of persistent discomfort. When taken for scans later in the evening, it emerged he had sustained a fracture, a CSA statement said the day after, on Friday.
"The timelines for return to play will be defined subsequent to that," the statement said, adding that the national selection panel would meet to identify the T20I captain for the series.
South Africa lost the first ODI by 14 runs. The second match is scheduled for Saturday, with the final game on Tuesday, after which the teams will play three T20Is.