SA vs BAN 2017: Vernon Philander Ruled Out of the Test Series
Sep 27, 2017 at 7:47 PM
South Africa’s injury list doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon, as Vernon Philander has been ruled out of the entire Test series against Bangladesh. According to the medical reports, Vernon is yet to recover from a lower back problem, and he is aiming to be fully fit by mid-October. Vernon will most probably play in the fourth and fifth round of the first class season for his franchisee Cobras.
Philander has been out of action since the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford. He has been suffering from the back problem since the England tour. Earlier he was expected to be back for the Bangladesh series, but it looks like there is still some time for him to regain full fitness. Philander has been a part of the Cobras pre-season training but did not play any match.
South Africa’s bowling department has been struggling with fitness as Chris Morris, Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn are out of the squad due to injuries. Kagiso Rabada and Morne Morkel will spearhead the South African bowling department. Morris and Philander are expected to be fit by mid-October, whereas Steyn will play in the Global T20 tournament in November.
Recently in an event, Graeme Smith criticized Philander for his fitness levels and said he does not take care of his fitness the way he should. He said:
“One of the big issues for him is fitness and he does need to take a look at it. He is at that phase of his career where if he doesn’t, he could fade away pretty quickly.”
To this Vernon replied that being an international player he is prone to such criticisms. He said:
“It’s international sport, you’ll always find criticism. As long as it’s constructive, then I’m all for it. You’ve got to take it on the chin, I and Faf had a good chat afterwards, the way the two of us nailed down things was quite constructive at the end of the day. As long as you’re open and honest with each other, that’s the key thing. He made his view clear and obviously I made mine clear to him. As long as we understand each other, we’ve got a road to walk together.”