Proteas coach Ottis Gibson must be paaping at the moment.
Two of his World Cup squad fast bowlers Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi having missed this season’s Indian Premier League (IPL) because of respective injuries and his two best speedsters Kagiso Rabada and Dale Steyn returned to South Africa after suffering injuries in this tournament.
VETERAN: Proteas stalwart Dale Steyn. Photo: Backpagepix.
With the World Cup starting at the end of the month, Gibson builds his team around his fast bowlers and will be a stressed-out man as the Proteas look to win their first ever trophy at the global showpiece.
Rabada is the latest bowler to go down with an injury after taking 25 wickets - the most in the tournament - for the Delhi Capitals.
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A post shared by Kagiso Rabada(@rabada_25) on May 4, 2019 at 12:45am PDT
The 23-year-old returned to South Africa on the weekend with a back problem, but wrote on Instagram yesterday: “Regarding my back, I’m good - precautionary is all.”
HARD KNOCKS: Lungi Ngidi. Photo: Samuel Shivambu/Backpagepix.
Heading into the World Cup, Rabada showed good form in the competition, with South Africa’s best spin bowler Imran Tahir second on the wicket-taker’s list with 21 scalps.
NEWCOMER: Pacy Anrich Nortje, centre. Photo: Backpagepix.
Ngidi (side strain) and Nortje (shoulder) are both on the comeback trail and expected to join the team ahead of their May 30 opener against England, with Steyn also still nursing an injured shoulder.