AB de Villiers to Miss ODI Against Ireland

South Africa’s ODI captain AB de Villiers will sit out the one-off match against Ireland on September 25 to allow himself more time to recover from the elbow injury that kept him out of the New Zealand Tests. Faf du Plessis will captain the team in his absence while Rilee Rossouw, who has recovered from a shoulder injury sustained in the triangular series in the Caribbean in June, was added to the squad as batting cover.

De Villiers’ participation in the first ODI of the five-match series against Australia, which follows the Ireland game, is also in doubt. He will undergo a fitness test before any confirmation on whether he will play that match, which takes place on September 30.

“AB has been on a rigorous rehabilitation and treatment plan for the last six weeks but is still complaining of pain in the elbow region,” South Africa’s team manager Mohammed Moosajee said. “We consulted with a specialist, who advised extensive rehab and injected the elbow with cortisone.

“However, the CSA medical committee has recommended a few more days of rehab to allow the elbow to improve. He will undergo treatment this week with our physiotherapist, Brandon Jackson, and a final call on his availability for the first ODI against Australia will be subject to him passing a fitness test. While surgery remains the last option, we hope that the extra time will allow the injury to respond to treatment.”

There has been no update on South Africa’s other injured player, Morne Morkel, who also missed the New Zealand Tests, with a back injury. Morkel was not included in the ODI squad and is targeting the Tests in Australia in November for a comeback.

South Africa have three new caps in the ODI squad to face Ireland, with Temba Bavuma, Dwaine Pretorius and Andile Phehlukwayo all included. Bavuma is expected to open the batting with Quinton de Kock, in place of Hashim Amla, who has been rested, while Pretorius will compete with Wayne Parnell and Chris Morris for a debut. Neither Bavuma nor Pretorius is in the squad to face Australia but Phehlukwayo, who seems certain to debut at some stage over the next month, is.

Courtesy : espncricinfo