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Gibbs ruled out
of the 1st Test with a Twisted Ankle
South Africa
go into next week’s Test series against Sri Lanka worried about
the energy-sapping hot weather, lost baggage, Muttiah
Muralitharan and the fitness of prolific opener Herschelle
Gibbs.
Gibbs, who twisted his right ankle at a pre-tour
training camp in Pretoria, has been ruled out of the first Test
in Galle from August 4 and remains an uncertain starter for the
second and final Test in Colombo a week later. “He is out for
Galle and the physio is working hard to get him going for the
second Test,” captain Graeme Smith said ahead of a practice
session in the Sri Lankan capital on Thursday. The tourists, who
will also play five one-day internationals after the Tests, have
drafted in Andrew Puttick, a 23-year-old uncapped left-hander
from Cape Town, as cover for Gibbs. Meanwhile, star all-rounders
Shaun Pollock and Lance Klusener will play a warm-up match from
Friday in borrowed clothes after their bags went missing en
route from Johannesburg.
The South Africans will use the three-day game against
the Sri Lankan board president’s team to acclimatise to the
intense heat and humidity after coming off a two-month break
from international cricket and winter back home. “It’s winter in
South Africa and we have had just a week of training before
coming here,” Smith said. “Our preparations ahead of the first
Test is really important. We will have to make the most of the
time we have.” Smith conceded his team’s main threat will be Sri
Lanka’s star off-spinner Muralitharan, Test cricket’s joint
world record holder with Australian Shane Warne with 527
wickets.
“We all know Murali is a world class performer and he
is going to perform well in conditions which are going to suit
him,” the South African captain said. “I think he is going to be
a handful even without bowling the doosra.” Muralitharan has
been banned by the International Cricket Council from bowling
the controversial ‘doosra’, the delivery that spins the other
way from a normal off-break, till tests confirm it is not bowled
with an illegal action.
South Africa, who slipped to number three in the world
Test rankings after being overtaken by England, will regain
their number two place behind Australia if they win both Test
matches against Sri Lanka. “A good tour in Sri Lanka will give
us a lot of confidence,” Smith said. “This is a real tough place
to come and play. We certainly look forward to the challenge.”
The last time South Africa played Test cricket in Sri Lanka, in
2000, they drew the three-match series 1-1.
South African Test Squad
Graeme
Smith (capt), Andrew Puttick, Jacques Kallis, Boeta Dippenaar,
Jacques Rudolph, Martin van Jaarsveld, Mark Boucher (wk), Nicky
Boje, Shaun Pollock, Lance Klusener, Robin Peterson, Andre Nel,
Nantie Hayward, Makhaya Ntini, Herschelle Gibbs
South African One Day Squad
Graeme Smith (capt), Andrew Puttick, Jacques Kallis, Jean-Paul
Duminy, Jacques Rudolph, Martin van Jaarsveld, Mark Boucher
(wk), Nicky Boje, Shaun Pollock, Lance Klusener, Robin Peterson,
Andre Nel, Alan Dawson, Makhaya Ntini, Herschelle Gibbs
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