South African cricket captain, Temba Bavuma, found himself at the center of a viral moment during the 2023 World Cup Captains Meet in Ahmedabad. A photo circulated on social media that appeared to show him sleeping during the event. However, Bavuma has come forward to clarify that he wasn’t actually dozing off but that the camera angle had created a misleading impression.
The Captains Meet was a significant pre-tournament event where all 10 team captains engaged with journalists and broadcasters. Temba Bavuma represented South Africa on this occasion.
Temba Bavuma has just fallen asleep in the World Cup captain's conference pic.twitter.com/GqQXZ3MenG
— England's Barmy Army 🏴🎺 (@TheBarmyArmy) October 4, 2023
Temba Bavuma Denies Sleeping During 2023 World Cup Captains Meet
The viral photo depicting Bavuma seemingly asleep caused quite a stir online. Nevertheless, Bavuma was quick to assert that he was fully awake and engaged, blaming the camera angle for the misinterpretation. In response to a tweet from The Barmy Army sharing the photo, he tweeted, “I blame the camera angle, I wasn’t sleeping.”
Despite his clarification, many fans remained skeptical and insisted that the South African captain had indeed nodded off during the event. Some even expressed their doubts in the comments section of his tweet.
Temba Bavuma during the Captain's Round Table Event. pic.twitter.com/xaxRHTzg4V
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) October 4, 2023
This year’s ICC ODI World Cup marks Temba Bavuma’s debut as the captain of the South African cricket team. The Proteas are set to kick off their World Cup campaign against former champions Sri Lanka on October 7th at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. It’s worth noting that the last time India hosted a 50-over World Cup, South Africa finished at the top of their group’s points table. Cricket enthusiasts are eager to see if Bavuma’s team can replicate that performance this year.
In preparation for the 2023 World Cup, Temba Bavuma’s squad played a warm-up match against New Zealand, which ended with the Blackcaps winning by seven runs through the D/L method.
