Quinton de Kock ruled out of the ODI and T20I series

South Africa, in the ongoing six-match ODI series against India, are lagging by 0-2 after losing the first two matches rather very badly. They are missing their gun players in AB de Villiers and the skipper Faf du Plessis who are out injured already. While the former is set to make his comeback in the fourth ODI on February 10, du Plessis has been ruled out of the series due to an injured finger. However, Quinton de Kock is the latest casualty as he has also been ruled out of the ODI and the subsequent T20I series with a left wrist injury.

The wicket-keeper batsman was already struggling with the same in the second match. Moreover, he was hit on the wrist by Jasprit Bumrah in the second over of the game while batting. He was visibly in extreme pain and looked out of sorts after that blow. He was not in great form with the bat either scoring 34 and 20 in the opening couple of games. Both the times, he was dismissed by Yuzvendra Chahal exposing the flaws of the batsman against the spin.

Out of action for 2-4 weeks

Quinton de Kock’s injury will take 2-4 weeks to recover according to the team manager Dr Mohammed Moosajee. “Quinton suffered an extreme blow to the left wrist while batting in the second ODI on Sunday and felt severe pain and discomfort. Further investigation revealed severe bony bruising to the area, with associated swelling around the tendon in the wrist,” he said.

He also added that the team management is hoping that he will be fit before the Test series against Australia which commences on March 1. “This type of injury will require between 2-4 weeks to heal, which subsequently rules him out of the remainder of the ODI and T20 series against India. The Cricket South Africa medical team will aim to have him ready for the Test series against Australia starting next month,” Moosajee continued.

The selectors of Cricket South Africa (CSA) had named the backup wicket-keeper after the first ODI itself. Heinrich Klaasen earned his maiden ODI call-up and is expected to make his debut against the mighty Indians who are on a rampage currently on the tour. He has featured in 42 list A games so far and has scored 1167 runs at an average of 35.36 with an impressive strike rate of 90.11.

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