Kagiso Rabada ruled out of ODI series against Australia and India due to groin injury
What's the story?
In what will be a huge blow for South Africa, pacer Kagiso Rabada has been ruled out the ODI series against Australia and the subsequent three-match ODI tour of India which begins on March 12th at Dharamsala due to groin strain he sustained during the recently-concluded T20I series against Aaron Finch's men.
The Background
Rabada who was rested for the limited-overs series against England earlier this month returned to action in the T20Is against the Men in Yellow picking up two wickets in the three-match which the visitors won 2-1.
The heart of the matter
Meanwhile, Rabada sustained a groin strain during the three-match T20I series against Australia will be out of action for four weeks, which means that he should regain his fitness before 2020 IPL which begins on March 29th at Wankhede Stadium. Delhi Capitals, though, begin their campaign on March 30th at home against KL Rahul's Kings XI Punjab. No squad replacement has been announced yet for the 24-year-old speedster who underwent an MRI scan to assess the extent of the problem. Speaking about Rabada's injury, Cricket South Africa Chief Medical Officer Dr Shuaib Manjra said,
"The significant injury means that he will take approximately four weeks to heal, which effectively rules him out of both the Australia and India ODI series.The CSA medical staff will ensure his effective and expeditious recovery"
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What's next?
A key member of the Shreyas Iyer-led outfit, Rabada who picked up 25 wickets in 12 matches last year will be determined to replicate his 2019 IPL success this year as well. It remains to be seen whether the fiery Protea pacer will be fully-fit when the season thirteen of cash-rich Indian Premier League kicks-off on March 29th.
Meanwhile, batsman Temba Bavuma who missed the T20Is against Australia due to hamstring issue will return to the squad for the 50-over format which begins on February 29th at Boland Park, Paarl.