The latest injury to speedster Gerald Coetzee has ruled him out of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Gqeberha and has robbed him of all chances of playing in the complete multi-format series against Pakistan.
Scans carried out revealed that the injury suffered by Gerald Coetzee on the fourth day of the first Test in Durban is a muscle strain of his right groin, thereby ruling him out of the Pakistan series for as much as six weeks.
In his place, Kwena Maphaka, a promising fast bowler who made his international debut this year during the T20I series against the West Indies, has been called up to replace him in the squad.
The injury occurred while Coetzee was bowling in the morning session of the Durban Test. With that, he returned to bury himself in lunch and squeezed out Chandimal, taking him caught and bowled. He did not bowl after that.
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Gerald Coetzee’s injury raises South Africa’s already tall mind list of injuries. They had Wiaan Mulder already going down as he suffered a fracture on his right middle finger, and now there are more Proteas who are down. Nandre Burger is ruled out for the summer due to a lower back stress fracture, and Lungi Ngidi will miss action until January.
There’s more bad news for South Africa. The Proteas are now preparing for a high-stakes series against Pakistan, comprising three T20Is, three ODIs, and two Tests. South Africa has to stand toll in their upcoming fixtures to ensure their competitiveness remains as they come against these challenges.
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