South Africa Women’s team captain Dane Van Niekerk has been ruled out of action for at least three months including the upcoming 2022 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand after suffering an ankle injury, CSA confirmed in a statement on Thursday.
Van Niekerk has been sidelined due to an injury
The swash-buckling all-rounder sustained a fracture to her left ankle after slipping on a wet surface at her residence last week & has been immediately sidelined from the training camp ahead of the four-match ODI series at home against West Indies in the lead up to the World Cup.
“As things stand, she doesn’t require surgery but will be monitored closely. It’s a stable fracture with minimal displacement and her recovery timeline is no less than 12 weeks,” team doctor Tshegofatso Gaetsewe said.
“Losing Dane Van Niekerk is massive for the team and the country, we will sorely miss her leadership and all-around cricket abilities. I would like to wish her all the best with her recovery and a smooth and seamless return to the national team,” Convenor of Selectors, Clinton du Preez said. “This brings about an opportunity for another player within the pipeline”, Du Preez added to his statement.
CSA named a group of 21 members
CSA has not named any replacement captain ahead of their training camp which starts on Friday, but Sune Luus has captained the team in Van Niekerk’s absence. However, CSA named a group of 21 members for the training camp which includes senior players like Shabnim Ismail, Marizanne Kapp, Ayabonga Khaka, and Lizelle Lee among others. CSA also picked uncapped Western Province batter Delmari Tucker and recalled Raisibe Ntozakhe to the training squad.
“This is a great opportunity for the coaches to work with this strong group of players and strategically set out the plan for the upcoming series and then moving into the World Cup,” convenor of selectors Clinton du Preez said.
The 21-member South Africa Women’s squad will enter the bio-secure environment on Friday & will further undergo 10 days of training for the ODI series. After 10 days of camp, South Africa will play a warm-up against the visiting West Indies side on January 25. The four-match ODI series between South Africa Women & West Indies Women will be played in Johannesburg between January 28 and February 6.
21 member extended Training Squad
Anneke Bosch, Tazmin Brits, Trisha Chetty, Nadine de Klerk, Mignon du Preez, Lara Goodall, Shabnim Ismail, Sinalo Jafta, Marizanne Kapp, Ayabonga Khaka, Masabata Klaas, Lizelle Lee, Sune Luus, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Raisibe Ntozakhe, Tumi Sekhukhune, Nondumiso Shangase, Andrie Steyn, Chloe Tryon, Delmari Tucker, Laura Wolvaardt.