3 reasons why appointing Aiden Markram as T20I captain is good for South Africa

Aiden Markram's stock continues to rise as he has been named the captain of South Africa's national T20 side today.

South Africa's new white-ball coach, Rob Walter, said that the promotion was quite logical given that Markram was seen as a leadership prospect from a very young age.

Walter said at a press conference in Johannesburg:

"Aiden has shown himself to be a leader over a period of time now. Obviously, his most recent success for the Sunrisers [Eastern Cape] stands out so it seemed like just a logical progression into the leadership of the national side."

The last few weeks have been pretty good for Markram, who led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to a title win in the SA20. He was then appointed as the captain of Sunrisers Hyderabad for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League.

Here, we look at three reasons why appointing Aiden Markram as T20I captain is good for South Africa.

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#1 Has a lot of captaincy experience and has delivered titles

Markram has been seen as a leader right from his early days

Not only does Markram have experience as a captain, but he also knows what it takes to win championships, having led South Africa to the U-19 World Cup title in 2014. He was prolific as he played responsibly, finishing the tournament as the third-highest run scorer with 370 runs from six games.

He also recently led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to a title win in the inaugural SA20 League. He led from the front, performing every time his team needed him. He admitted after the final that the extra responsibility of leadership tends to bring out the best in him.

Markram has also led the senior South African side in the past, filling in for an injured Faf du Plessis. Graeme Smith, arguably South Africa's best ever captain, once described Markram as a "future national captain."

Markram recently led the IPL side's sister franchise Sunriseres Eastern Cape to a title win in the inaugutral SA20

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#2 Can be a long-term prospect

There is no doubt about the enormous talent that Markram possesses. On top of that, he is now an experienced campaigner, having appeared in all three formats for his country.

He has also represented a lot of teams in T20 leagues around the world, including the IPL, but there is a school of thought that says that he is yet to hit peak form.

Over the last year or so, though, Markram has displayed signs of his coming of age, with some match-winning performances for the teams that he plays for, including South Africa. He is definitely one of the core members of the Proteas team at the moment and, thus, can be a good option to hold the job for a long time.

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#3 He is in good form at the moment

Markram has been in phenomenal form in recent times

Markram shone with the bat for the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20 League, finishing as the third-highest run getter in the inaugural SA20 League with 366 runs to his name.

He smashed a sensational century in the semi-final against the Joburg Super Kings, helping his side post a massive total of 213 in their designated 20 overs.

He was also impressive in the recently concluded Test match between South Africa and the West Indies, as he struck a phenomenal century in the first innings and backed it up with 47 runs in the second.

He has been in good form for quite a while now, contributing to the various teams that he represents not only with the bat but also with the ball, bagging some important wickets at times.