The South African cricket team for the series against India now includes Lungi Ngidi, formerly of The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), as a replacement.
Kagiso Rabada’s injury compelled Cricket South Africa (CSA) to take the decision of including Lungi Ngidi in the Test squad for the current Test series against India.
Lungi Ngidi is now part of the South Africa team.
The first match of the Test series against India was a challenging one for the Proteas as they lost their main fast bowler, Kagiso Rabada, due to an injury.
In South Africa’s practice, Kagiso Rabada had a rib injury, and then he went through several medical examinations and evaluations leading up to the match, before being finally ruled out for the Eden Gardens Test.
The Proteas, however, didn’t feel his absence too much as they managed a breathtaking 30-run win over India after the opposing team’s pitch strategy went wrong.
Kagiso Rabada is still a question mark for the second Test match which will begin on November 22 in Guwahati. If he again gets ruled out, the CSA has already set up a backup plan.
He has been replaced by Lungi Ngidi for the second Test match, and he has already joined the Kolkata team.
The Proteas have a lot of injury problems
Kagiso Rabada is not the only player in the visiting team with fitness problems. Veteran spinner Simon Harmer sustained a shoulder injury during the first Test.
Not only that, left-arm fast bowler Marco Jansen is also nursing an injury for which he accompanied Simon Harmer to the hospital and is also awaiting clarity regarding their participation in the next Test match.
After defeating India, Simon Harmer mentioned that they had a small party in their hotel, drinking a few beers to celebrate the victory.
“We are staying in a good hotel. Most likely tomorrow some golf. We had a beer last night. I guess it is the best thing for the team to celebrate their victories, especially here in India, because no one knows when they are going to come again. The veterans here are fond of winning Test matches. There is a quick turnaround, so it is good to have this little break,” he told ‘talkSPORT Cricket’.
“We will have to get back to the drawing board because the Indians will be very determined and will try to reverse the result of the first Test.”
Harmer thinks that India would never get back to the drawing board because they are going to be very determined and will try to reverse the first Test’s result.
“Harmer said that India has never played Test cricket at Guwahati so they might be unsure of it.Ordering a lot of coffee is one of the ways to prepare for the Test match to be held in their home ground, he added.
“This is the last Test of the series. The last Test will be played in the month of February. It is hard to say what conditions will be since all the Test matches will be in different months. Also, they have all the planning and preparation for the bowlers to get into the game, so is it going to be more friendly for seamers? You just don’t know. They will have people who are hoping to win, so the wicket will be suited to whatever team they want to pick,” he concluded.
Download the CricInformer app
Take CricInformer with you. Get our app for cricket news and updates on your phone.