South Africa batter Aiden Markram has been ruled out of the last two T20Is against India, Cricket South Africa (CSA) confirmed on Wednesday (June 15).
Earlier, Markram was ruled out of the opening game of the series at the Arun Jaitely stadium in New Delhi on June 9 after testing positive for Covid-19. The 27-year-old then didn’t return for the next two games as well.
Issuing a statement, the CSA said: “Proteas batsman, Aiden Markram, has been ruled out of the remainder of the Proteas’ tour to India. He spent seven days in quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19 last week and will not be able to complete his return to play programme in time to take part in the remainder of the T20 series, which is poised at 2-1 to South Africa.”
“The player is healthy and well and has been cleared to return home to also look after his mental and emotional wellbeing after isolation in a local facility as required when an individual tests positive on tour. Wicket-keeper batsman, Quinton de Kock, has made a marked improvement in his recovery from a wrist injury. The Proteas’ medical staff will continue to assess his progress and make a decision on his availability for Match Four in due course,” it added.
On the other hand, the touring party is also monitoring wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock’s progress as he continues his recovery from a wrist injury. Earlier, de Kock didn’t featured in the last two games of the five-match rubber due to the injury and was replaced in the Playing XI by Heinrich Klaasen.
After losing the first two affairs by seven and four wickets respectively, hosts India made a comeback in the third match at Visakhapatnam as they won the issue by 48 runs to keep the series alive.
The two sides will next face each other in the fourth match of the series at the Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) Stadium in Rajkot on June 17.
The fifth and final match of the series will be held at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on June 19.