Axe hangs over struggling Aiden Markram, but WHO could replace him?

Proteas captain Dean Elgar has hinted that batsman Aiden Markram could pay the price for his prolonged lack of form.

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Following his latest double-failure in the first Test against New Zealand, Markram’s average in the past 10 innings has dropped to under 10 runs, with his overall average dropping to 35.

The 27-year-old made a strong start to his Test career against the likes of Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, India and Australia, but his struggles started in Sri Lanka in 2018, and despite a brief resurgence against Pakistan last year, it’s been mostly downhill from there.

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“It’s a tough one and I don’t think I have to speak to him anymore. I’ve had a lot of tough conversations with him around him needing to score runs for us,” Elgar said.

“He kind of understands the situation he’s in at the moment in that his position is a little bit vulnerable.

“I’d like to think he’s a lot cleverer than that as a player and you don’t need to harp on too many things with him.

“He knows he needs to contribute for us. He knows he’s in an important position for us in the top order and we need guys firing.”

Time could be up for Aiden Markram

Elgar hinted that Aiden Markram’s time was indeed running out.

“We can’t carry a few spots in the batting line-up. One guy out of form can’t be carried with the hope of that player being one knock away from form,” he added.

“I’ve had a lot of good conversations with Aiden over the last few weeks and I know the angle of approach with him.

“It’s something that resonates with him in a big way, but I do need him to return the favours as well.”

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