‘Frustrated’ Markram’s punch lands himself out of third Test

Ranchi, October 17

A “frustrated” South African batsman Aiden Markram was ruled out of the third and final Test against India, having sustained a wrist injury after punching a “solid object”. A Cricket South Africa media release said: “The injury took place following the opener’s dismissal in the second innings of the match (in Pune). In a moment of frustration with his own performance, he lashed out at a solid object, resulting in his injury. 

“Aiden Markram has been ruled out of the third and final Freedom Series Test match after sustaining an injury to his right wrist during the second match in Pune,” the statement said.

South Africa have already conceded the series after suffering two heavy defeats in Visakhapatnam and Pune. Markram has had a mixed tour of India. While he scored two hundreds in the warm-up games, he couldn’t carry his form into the Test series. After scoring 5 and 39 in the first Test, he was dismissed for a pair in the second. 

Team doctor Hashendra Ramjee said, “A CT scan of Aiden Markram’s wrist showed a fracture involving the wrist bones. The medical team has therefore ruled him out of the next Test match against India. Arrangements have been made for him to see a specialist on his return to South Africa for further management of the injury.”

No replacement

Markram left for South Africa on Thursday morning. The team management hasn’t called up any replacement. The third Test starts here on Saturday. A disappointed Markram admitted he has let his team down. “It’s sad to be going home on this note and I completely understand what I’ve done wrong and take full accountability for it,” he said. — PTI

‘You get to know yourself a lot in India’

Ranchi: South Africa opener Dean Elgar says he got “stretched” as a cricketer and learned a lot more about himself during what has been a humbling India tour, part of which included visiting “smaller places and staying in hotels” not that good. After managing a 1-1 draw in the T20I series, South Africa suffered big defeats in the first Two Tests of the three-match rubber against a dominant outfit led by Virat Kohli. “It’s a challenging tour. You get stretched as a person, you get stretched as a cricketer. I think you get to know yourself quite a lot as a person when you come to the smaller places where the hotels are maybe not as good, and you get challenged on the field,” Elgar said. “It’s always a good learning curve coming to India.” The introduction of the World Test Championship means South Africa still have “quite a lot to play for” in the third Test despite conceding the series, Elgar said. “Back in the day it was always a bit of a dead rubber game but now with the World Test Championship around, we still have points to play for,” Elgar said. “We can still get 40 points by following our process against India in the last Test. That’s something we can’t neglect going into this game. There is still a lot to play for.” — PTI