England Vs South Africa 2017: Faf Du Plessis Set To Miss The Lord’s Test Match
Jul 3, 2017 at 4:14 PM
From South Africa’s point of view, ahead of the first Test at Lord’s, there’s a threatening news in store as Test skipper Faf du Plessis is set to miss the game. Du Plessis, who recently welcomed his first child, has decided to stay at home in South Africa for a little longer, meaning his exit from the first Test in London, which begins on the 6th July.
With du Plessis not taking any part in the series opener, opener Dean Elger is set to lead the team. The Proteas outfit bears a jaded look already, with ace pacer Dale Steyn out due to a shoulder injury since November, and former skipper AB de Villiers continuing his self-imposed exile from this form of the game. Now that Faf too is missing, there will be added burden on the likes of Hashim Amla and JP Duminy.
South Africa though, had some relief coming their way when pacer Vernon Philander was declared fit for the opener after going through an injury scare. With Philander in the scheme of things, he will partner Kagiso Rabada and Morne Morkel to form the pace trio.
Senior batsman Heino Kuhn is in line for a debut, and he was backed by former great Barry Richards recently.
“He’s been around the traps for 12, 13 years now, been a big push for him to be included, said Richards about the batsman.
“He’s mentally pretty strong but there’s always pressure. A Test match is a pressure, Lord’s is a pressure, your first Test match is a pressure. Stephen Cook, he’s 34, he’s had a go and they’ve been battling to get that position right. “But if Kuhn does it well, he’s got a Test career for three or four years.”