Courtesy: CSA
South African pacer Anrich Nortje has been ruled out of the remaining T20Is of the series and the subsequent ODI series against Pakistan due to a fractured left toe. The 31-year-old suffered the unfortunate injury during a training session ahead of the first T20I of the series at the Kingsmead in Durban, for which he is going to consult a specialist Orthopaedic surgeon to determine the period of recovery, according to the official statement from the Cricket South Africa (CSA).
Notably, after suffering a contusion to his left big toe, Anrich Nortje was initially ruled out of the first T20I of the three-match series, which South Africa won by 11 runs on Tuesday, December 10. Just a day later, he went for scans on Wednesday, which revealed a fracture in his toe, ruling him out of the limited overs series versus Pakistan, and he has been replaced by all-rounder Dayyaan Galiem in the remaining two matches of the T20I series.
Anrich Nortje had recently opted out of South Africa national contract to manage his workload
After picking up 15 wickets in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, playing a key role in helping South Africa reach the final of the tournament, Anrich Nortje opted out of the national contract, to manage his workload. And now, he has become a part of the long list of South African players, who are injured currently, including names like Gerald Coetzee, Nandre Burger, Lungi Ngidi, and Wiaan Mulder.
Moreover, in the first T20I of the series, South Africa reached 183/9 with a batting masterclass from David Miller, along with an impressive performance in the back end of the innings from George Linde. In response, Pakistan were always behind the eight ball in their run chase despite their captain Mohammad Rizwan batting till the end of the innings, but his 74 runs off 62 balls didn’t prove to be enough as they fell short by 11 runs.
