Windhoek, August 30: Cricket South Africa (CSA) announced on Sunday that fast bowler Lutho Sipamla has been ruled out of the ongoing T20 International tri-series against Namibia and Zimbabwe. Sipamla sustained a left hamstring injury, forcing his withdrawal from the series.
All-rounder Andile Simelane has been named as Sipamla’s replacement in the squad. Simelane has played 10 T20 International matches for South Africa to date. Sipamla’s injury occurred during South Africa’s opening match against host Namibia, where he bowled only 9 deliveries before leaving the field due to pain. Consequently, the 28-year-old Sipamla also missed the second match against Zimbabwe. Medical staff are currently assessing the severity of his muscle strain.
CSA issued a statement saying, “DP World Lions fast bowler Lutho Sipamla has been ruled out of the remaining T20 International tri-series against Namibia and Zimbabwe due to a left hamstring injury. The 28-year-old sustained the injury while bowling his second over during the first match against Namibia on Friday. Hollywoodbets Dolphins all-rounder Andile Simelane has been included in his place.”
Sipamla is the second South African player to withdraw from the tri-series, following batting all-rounder Jason Smith, who was ruled out due to a groin injury before the team’s departure to Namibia. At that time, the selection committee decided not to replace Smith with another player.
This injury adds to South Africa’s growing fitness concerns ahead of a challenging international calendar. Key fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has also been sidelined from the Test and ODI series against Australia as he continues to recover from a right hamstring injury sustained during winter conditioning training.
South Africa still has two more round-robin matches to play in the tri-series, with the possibility of a third match if they qualify for the final. Following the T20 International tri-series, South Africa will also face Namibia in a three-match ODI series.
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