Aiden Markram says captaining the Proteas Test team is the “ultimate” for him.

With regular Test skipper Temba Bavuma injured, Markram will lead South Africa in Test cricket for the first time in the first match against Bangladesh in Dhaka from 21 October.

Markram has captained the Proteas in ODI and T20I cricket, including this year’s T20 World Cup, but had to bide his time in the five-day game, with Shukri Conrad appointing Bavuma as Dean Elgar’s replacement when he became Test coach.

“It’s a dream come true, to be honest,” Markram said on Monday in Pretoria, where the Proteas had a red-ball camp. “It’s what I dreamed about as a kid: firstly, playing for South Africa, and secondly, captaining your country in a Test is the ultimate for me.

“I’m incredibly honoured and grateful for the opportunity. Hopefully, we can put in a good performance, start the series well, and build on that momentum.”

Markram said his captaincy style in Test cricket would “probably be similar” to that in other formats.

“A lot of it will be based on conditions when we’re out there,” he explained. “If it’s flat, we can experiment with fields and plans. If there’s assistance with the ball – whether it’s spinning or seaming – then it’s about patience and execution.

“We’ll assess everything once we’re there and make the call, but I don’t think it’ll be too different from the white-ball format.”

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Proteas Test squad – Temba Bavuma (c, Lions), David Bedingham (WP), Matthew Breetzke (Warriors), Dewald Brevis (Titans), Tony de Zorzi (WP), Keshav Maharaj (Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Titans), Wiaan Mulder (Lions), Senuran Muthusamy (Warriors), Lungi Ngidi (Titans), Dane Paterson (WP), Dane Piedt (Knights), Kagiso Rabada (Lions), Tristan Stubbs (Warriors), Ryan Rickelton (Lions), Kyle Verreynne (WP).

Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images