South Africa named four uncapped players in an expanded Test squad of 15 for the opener of their four-match series against England, Cricket South Africa announced on Wednesday.
Left-arm medium pacer Wayne Parnell, batsman Alviro Petersen, all-rounder Ryan McLaren and paceman Friedel de Wet could all win a first test cap if selected for the Dec. 16 contest at Centurion.
Of the quartet, only De Wet is not part of South Africa’s one-day squad currently involved in a series against England.
”Alviro Petersen deserves his call-up both for the impressive way he has returned to international cricket and the weight of runs he has made in domestic cricket,” South Africa’s convenor of selectors Mike Procter said in a statement.
”He is able to cover all of the top six batting positions.
”Ryan McLaren provides us with an all-rounder if we want to go down that route and we want both Wayne Parnell and Friedel de Wet to work in the national squad set-up.”
South Africa have opted for an enlarged squad to cover for premier all-rounder Jacques Kallis, who could miss out with a rib injury.
”Kallis is obviously a very big number in our test side and providing cover for him requires more than one player,” Procter added.
Squad:
Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, Friedel de Wet, JP Duminy, Paul Harris, Jacques Kallis, Ryan McLaren, Morne Morkel, Makhaya Ntini, Wayne Parnell, Alviro Petersen, Ashwell Prince, Dale Steyn. — Reuters