Even before the inaugural ICC Twenty20 gets off the block, host South Africa has been pushed to the back foot with its swashbuckling opener Loots Bosman ruled out of the event owing to a back injury.
Announcing the bad news for Graeme Smith’ side, Cricket South Africa president Norman Arendse said
It is with deep regret we had to take this course but the medical report left us with no alternative.
Loots has had a stand-alone record in this form of the game in South African cricket and he was desperate to play.
Bosman was fielding at the boundary in the ODI series against Zimbabwe when he went for a catch only to ram into an advertising hoarding.
Bosman’s absence would be a major setback for the side, considering the hard-hitting batsman shared a 132-run stand with his skipper Smith to set the highest partnership record in Twenty20 international.
South Africa has applied for a substitute for Bosman and the replacement would soon be announced after getting the nod from the ICC technical committee.
