Steyn to miss South Africa’s 2nd test vs England
South Africa fast bowler Dale Steyn will miss the second test against England at Newlands due to a lingering shoulder injury.
Kagiso Rabada replaces Steyn for his fourth test appearance, South Africa captain Hashim Amla said on Friday. The test starts on Saturday. The hosts, who are the topranked team in the world, lost the first of four tests by 241 runs to England.
Steyn, who started that match as the top-ranked bowler in the world, twice came off the pitch in mid-over on day three and did not bowl again.
England captain Alastair Cook says James Anderson, who missed the first test in Durban with a calf injury, is "desperate to play" but no decision has been taken yet.
Anderson is the country's record test wicket-taker.
Lloyd says no worries with players taking T20 cash vs tests
West Indies chairman of selectors Clive Lloyd says he cannot fault the Caribbean's star players for preferring lucrative Twenty20 contracts to test cricket.
West Indies players Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Bravo and Samuel Badree are playing in the domestic Big Bash T20 tournament while the beleaguered test team is 2-0 down to Australia going into the final test beginning Sunday.
Lloyd said Friday that "with the money that is being paid in these shorter games it's obvious that players are looking towards their future and unfortunately we're missing out" and that "we're left with a vacuum and we now have to fill that."
Lloyd said Gayle could return to test cricket but "you have to play in our four-day competition before you're selected for the longer game."
Amir back in Pakistan limited-overs squads
Fast bowler Mohammad Amir is back in Pakistan's Twenty20 and ODI squads — provided he can get a visa for New Zealand.
Amir's five-year ban from international cricket for spot-fixing ended in September but the leftarm quick needs clearance from authorities in New Zealand because he also served three months in an English jail for taking bribes to bowl no-balls at agreed times.
"On his international comeback, Amir will travel with the team subject to grant of visa by the New Zealand government," chief selector Haroon Rasheed said in a statement on Friday.
Pakistan is scheduled to play three Twenty20s and three oneday internationals, starting Jan. 15, in New Zealand.
It will be Pakistan's last Twenty20 series before the World Twenty20 tournament in March. The selectors also recalled Umar Gul to assess the fitness of the fast bowler ahead of the tournament in India.
"(The) Twenty20 team has been selected with a view to provide opportunities to everyone likely to feature in the squad for the global event," Rasheed said.
The 23-year-old Amir has impressed selectors after he took 14 wickets in nine Twenty20 matches in Bangladesh's domestic league, but his recall last month to the national training camp in Lahore upset at least two senior players.
ODI captain Azhar Ali and opening batsman Mohammad Hafeez openly opposed Amir joining the camp before they met with Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan and were told to accept Amir if he was selected for the national team. Khan rejected Ali's offer to quit the captaincy over Amir's inclusion in the camp.
Surprisingly, selectors named fast bowler Mohammad Irfan for only the ODI squad.
Squads
Twenty20: Shahid Afridi (captain), Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Sohaib Maqsood, Shoaib Malik, Umar Akmal, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Anwar Ali, Amir Yamin, Sarfraz Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Umar Gul, Mohammad Rizwan, Saad Nasim, Mohammad Amir.
ODI: Azhar Ali (captain), Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sohaib Maqsood, Zafar Gohar, Imad Wasim, Anwar Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Amir.