Aiden Markram is excited about opening the batting with Titans teammate Dean Elgar on his Test debut. 

Markram had the perfect warm-up for his Test debut with 119 and 87 on his debut as skipper for the Titans.

Besides gaining personal momentum, the ex-U19 World Cup-winning captain got the perfect chance to bond with Elgar, who will be his opening batting partner for the Proteas.

The pair enjoyed partnerships of 52 and 184 in the recent encounter against the Dolphins, and Markram said he looked forward to Elgar’s presence alongside him in the Test arena.

‘We have a good understanding of each other’s games and how we operate. I am excited to go with him,’ Markram told TimesLive.

Shortly after the announcement that the 22-year-old would be the new captain of the Titans for the Sunfoil Series, CSA announced that Markram would be in the side to face Bangladesh.

‘I know that this is a very big opportunity and responsibility and I don’t take it for granted,’ he said. ‘I don’t want to put myself under any sort of pressure. It is a reality that is here but I won’t allow it to affect me too much.’

Proteas Test squad for the first Test against Bangladesh: Faf du Plessis (captain), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Quinton de Kock, Dean Elgar, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morne Morkel, Duanne Olivier, Wayne Parnell, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada

Photo: Lee Warren/Gallo Images