World Cup 2019: Update on Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn and Lungi Ngidi’s fitness ahead of India clash

South Africa were stunned by Bangladesh at the Kennington Oval in London on Sunday in the ongoing World Cup in England and Wales. The Faf du Plessis-led side is in trouble now having lost both of their matches and will have to get back on track soon. Injuries to key players haven’t helped either. While Dale Steyn didn’t get fit in time for both the matches, Hashim Amla was hit on the helmet in the opening game and Lungi Ngidi walked off midway through the Bangladesh game.

Amla was hit on the helmet grille by Jofra Archer and had to retire hurt in the steep chase after the concussion test came out negative. Though the veteran came out to bat later in the innings, he couldn’t make much of a difference to the run-scoring as South Africa lost the game easily. He also missed the match against Bangladesh and David Miller was included in the line-up.

However, things seem to be improving in terms of Amla’s fitness for South Africa and he is expected to take the field for the game against India. “Hashim hasn’t fully recovered from the blow sustained to the helmet during the match against England on Thursday and is not available for selection for the match today.

“With the quick turnaround between the two matches, he is being rested as a precaution, based on our post-match re-assessment. We are hopeful that he will make a full recovery to be available for selection for our next match against India,” the team manager Mohammed Moosajee was quoted as saying by Sportstar.

Steyn also set to be back

Another huge boost for South Africa could be Dale Steyn’s return to the mix after sitting out in the first two matches in the World Cup. Proteas need him badly after starting their campaign on the worst possible note. Steyn was also seen bowling in the middle after the match ended on Sunday and the team management will be hoping that he takes the field on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Lungi Ngidi suffered a hamstring injury in the match against Bangladesh and has been ruled out of the action for a week or 10 days. He will certainly miss the India clash and the team is hoping for him make a comeback for the game against the Windies on June 10.

“He was assessed and clinically we felt that he had a left hamstring strain. We decided not to let him go out there and bowl any further in this match. So currently, it probably means that he’ll be out for about a week to 10 days, but we’ll have scans done tomorrow. The plan will be probably to get him ready for the West Indies match,” Moosajee said while speaking about Ngidi’s injury.