Burger experienced discomfort in his right hamstring while bowling during the second ODI in Raipur on Wednesday and was forced to leave the field at mid-off, with captain Aiden Markram completing his overs. De Zorzi, meanwhile, felt pain in his right hamstring area while batting during the chase in South Africa and had to retire injured. Both players underwent scans on Friday, which confirmed the extent of their injuries, ruling them out of the final ODI.
Moreover, De Zorzi has also been ruled out of the upcoming five-match T20I series against India, which starts on Tuesday, December 9. He is returning home and Cricket South Africa has confirmed that no replacement will be added for him.
In a new setback, young fast bowler Kwena Maphaka has not made the progress he expected during the final stages of his rehabilitation from a left hamstring injury. He will not be fit again in time for the start of the T20I series and has been withdrawn from the squad. Pacer Lutho Sipamla has been named as his replacement.
The ODI series is tied at 1-1 and sets up an exciting final in Visakhapatnam. In the opening match in Ranchi, India posted a strong total of 349, courtesy of Rohit Sharma (57), Virat Kohli (135) and KL Rahul (60). Ottneil Baartman bowled economically for South Africa and took 2/60. However, the Proteas fell 17 runs short despite battles from Matthew Breetzke (72), Marco Jansen (70) and Corbin Bosch (67). India’s victory was decided by Kuldeep Yadav’s 4/68 and Harshit Rana’s 3/65.
In the second ODI, India again crossed 350 and scored 358 with Kohli (102), Ruturaj Gaikwad (105) and Rahul (66*) leading the way. Jansen impressed with 2/63. However, South Africa successfully chased down the target with four wickets, riding on Markram’s excellent 110, Breetzke’s 68 and Dewald Brevis’s 54. Although Prasidh Krishna took two wickets, he remained dear with 2/85.
With both sides aiming for one win apiece, the decider promises high stakes and high intensity as each team strives to lift the series trophy.
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