Dale Steyn to Replace Injured Hashim Amla at Hampshire
South Africa star, Dale Steyn will fill in for his compatriot Hashim Amla in the ongoing English county season. Amla would not return to ply his trade for Hampshire due to the knee injury and will get replaced by Steyn instead.
The veteran batsman had suffered a minor knee injury in May and returned to South Africa late last month for fitness and medical screening.
But upon his arrival, he was told not to return to England to recover before South Africa’s Test series against Sri Lanka next month.
Giles White, Hampshire’s Director of Cricket, lavished praise on Amla for his performance for the club.
“I can’t say enough positive things about Hashim. He made a brilliant impression. He’s been outstanding throughout that time spent with us, both through his engagement with the Club and our young players. As well as the experience and skill he offered with the bat,” White said.
Amla was in red-hot form during his stay in England. The Proteas star amassed 611 runs at an average over 50 in both four-day and List A matches during April and May. He scored two centuries and four fifties for the county outfit.
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White wished Amla luck for the upcoming series before expressing his desire of having the batsman back at the club again,
“It’s easy to see why he’s so well regarded around the world and one of the greats of our era. We wish him well against Sri Lanka, and hopefully one day we’ll see him back in Hampshire colours,” white added.
Meanwhile, Steyn will have to improve by leaps and bounds if he is looking to make the same impression as Amla did for the club.
The pacer made his debut for the club early this week but failed to impress. Steyn gave away 80 runs in his ten overs for one wicket while against Somerset in the Royal London One Day Cup in Southampton.
The right-arm pacer will play three more matches this month – against Yorkshire, Lancashire and Surrey.
Steyn will also be available for the Royal London One-Day Cup semi-final fixture, to be held at the Ageas Bowl later in June.
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