“Situation we've been put in from a cricketing fraternity perspective isn't ideal” - Dean Elgar on South Africa squad for New Zealand Tests

Veteran South African batter Dean Elgar has admitted that Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) decision to pick an inexperienced Test squad for the tour of New Zealand is not an "ideal" situation. He, however, asserted that he is confident of Test cricket surviving and having a future.

Elgar, 36, will be retiring from international cricket after the Cape Town Test against India, which starts on Wednesday, January 3. He will be leading the Proteas in his farewell Test in injured Temba Bavuma’s absence.

At a pre-match press conference, the opening batter shared his frank views on CSA’s move to name seven uncapped players in the squad for the Test series in New Zealand next month.

"I still think Test cricket will have a future and in speaking to the younger guys in the dressing room, they still live for the format. The situation we've been put in from a cricketing fraternity perspective isn't ideal and maybe the team that's selected to go to New Zealand isn't ideal for the conversation of how I see Test cricket," Elgar opined.

Uncapped Neil Brand will lead the South African team against the Kiwis as most of the senior players will be part of SA20.

"It must be seen in that light as we can't control what happens behind the scenes. It is out of the players, coaches and team management's hands. We need to focus on what we can focus on and the guys going to New Zealand need to focus on that," the left-handed batter added.

Meanwhile, several former cricketers have expressed concern for CSA’s decision to prioritize T20 cricket over Test matches.

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“I made my decision long ago” - Elgar on Test retirement

While the debate over the future of Test cricket has gained momentum, Elgar made it clear that his decision to retire has nothing to do with the recent developments in South African cricket. He revealed that he had made his mind up a while back.

"I made my decision long ago. It was a couple of months back that I decided for this to be my last serie. Regardless of what happened behind the scenes, I had already made my bed and I'm sleeping in it quite nicely. The future is in the hands of the administrators in terms of making the right decisions for players and the longevity of our Test format and our Test team,” he said.

Elgar has played 85 Tests for South Africa, scoring 5,331 runs at an average of 38.08 with 14 hundreds and 23 fifties.