South Africa’s top attack bowler, Kagiso Rabada, will miss the first Test against Australia, set to begin in Durban on Friday, as the home team opts to include two spinners at Kingsmead. Rabada, who was fighting for selection as he returned to fitness following a hamstring injury in June and trained with the squad at Kingsmead on Thursday, has been omitted to allow his recovery to continue, according to captain Temba Bavuma at a press conference.
On Wednesday, South Africa spinner Simon Harmer gave an update on Rabada’s fitness but acknowledged that he was n’t certain if the fast bowler would be fit to play. Harmer said that all members of the South African camp are eager to see Rabada play, but he also emphasised that the team wouldn’t want to jeopardise his long-term fitness.
Cricbuzz quotes Harmer saying, “Everybody wants him to play. The spectators, us in the changeroom, the Australians. I don’t know exactly where he’s at. A decision will be made as close to the [start of the] game as possible. But he’s proved season-in, season-out that he’s a world-class player, and he’s only going to make our team better. So I really hope he does get in for the first Test but there’s a lot of cricket this summer. We don’t want to risk short-term gain for long-term damage.”
Rabada did not take part in the early portion of South Africa’s training session at Kingsmead on Wednesday, remaining in the players’ dining area during that time. He finally stepped onto the field and performed a sequence of warm-up and stretching routines.
The pacer then walked toward the western side of the square, where he had originally stood behind the stumps at the non-striker ’s end, observing his teammates bowl. Rabada then shifted to a different pitch, while Piet Botha watched his session closely. At first, he bowled using a two-step run-up and did n’t finish his follow-through, but slowly lengthened his approach to nine paces.
The fast bowler bowled approximately 20 deliveries during the session and seemed to be moving well. However, he must substantially ramp up his workload before he can be deemed ready for a Test match.
