South Africa’s new Test captain Dean Elgar has said that the side is “frustrated” after not being able to play much of cricket in the longer format and are looking forward to taking on the field against West Indies in the two-match series.
"It’s been such an up and down time for all of us, as players we have been frustrated by having limited access to international cricket. We are excited and keen to get going," Elgar told reporters on Saturday.
The left-handed batsman also emphasised that the South African team needs to play more consistent and regular cricket.
"We need to play more cricket and better cricket, we are very conscious that over the last period we haven’t been consistent. Our skill level hasn’t been where it should be," Elgar said.
Elgar admitted that it is a challenging task to compete in a Test championship but the players should focus on improving their performances and rise in the rankings.
"We want to compete and play in a final of a test championship, but I understand that there is a process that you have to follow,” he said.
"We must start to climb the rankings again,” Elgar added.
South Africa had hosted Sri Lanka in January this year for a two-match series and won both the Tests convincingly. They won the first match by an innings and 45 runs in Centurion while the second by 10 wickets in Johannesburg.
They then toured Pakistan for another two-match Test series but suffered a clean sweep defeat against the Asian side. Pakistan won the first match by 7 wickets in Karachi while clinched a 95-run victory in the second in Rawalpindi.
The Proteas will now begin the Test series against West Indies on June 10 and both the matches will take place in St. Lucia.