South African all-rounder Jean-Paul Duminy has said Kagiso Rabada has been one of most their most sorted bowler and that his presence in the side makes a mountain difference.
The young pacer was left out of the squad for second ODI in Christchurch due to a knee injury, and result to that South Africa lost the match by just six runs. Rabada’s absence also saw Proteas grabbing just four wickets in the game. The five-match ODI series runs one all by now with the third game to be played in Wellington on Saturday.
The fast bowler has however been a workhorse for South Africa from a while now, as in 2016, he bowled the most number of overs (431.3) in 32 matches played, joint-most along with Faf du Plessis and Quinton de Kock.
Looking at the numbers, it shows how much of a pressure he has been taking and given the hectic schedule (including that of IPL), where he was bought for five crores by Delhi Daredevils, it seems the more workload might take a toll on him and hamper his form.
He has been pacey, he has been accurate and more importantly, he has been effective. Jean-Paul Duminy, who hopes Rabada would be back for the next game, said he has been a stalwart for them.
“He has been stalwart for us for a while now. He has been our main strike bowler in most formats and it’s always a great strength for us to have him in our attack. It will be good to see him back.”
Rabada, 21, was however seen bowling in the nets ahead of the crucial match with the padded knee and stays in expected line to join the first team.