Lungi Ngidi of New Zealand ruled out of the 2nd Test against South Africa due to a back strain.

Lungi Ngidi of New Zealand ruled out of the 2nd Test against South Africa due to a back strain. Dean Elgar stated that Ngidi’s preparations may be difficult to meet Test match standards.

Lungi Ngidi, South Africa’s fast bowler, has been rule out of the second and final Test against New Zealand due to a back strain. South Africa lost the first Test match in Christchurch by an innings and 276 runs.

Going into the second Test match, which will also be played at the same venue. Ngidi’s absence could be a significant blow to the already depleted South African team hoping to salvage a tie in the series.

The 25-year-old paceman was also unable to play in the first Test last week. South Africa came into the game with a significantly weaker bowling attack, as both Ngidi and another regular bowler, Anrich Nortje, were rule out due to injury.

South African captain Dean Elgar shed light on the status of Ngidi’s recovery, stating that it may be difficult for the bowler to carry out his preparations by Test match standards, given that he did not get the chance to bowl last week. Elgar described it as a setback for his team, revealing that the bowler is only able to bowl with a short run-up at this time and is not training with the squad.

“Because he hasn’t been able to bowl last week, I don’t think his bowling loads are up to the standard of preparing for Test matches,” Elgar told reporters.

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“He hasn’t been training with us and has only bowled a short run-up, which has been a bit of a setback for us.” We all know Lungi is an important part of our bowling lineup. So it’s a little disappointing that he’s in this situation right now,” he added.

South Africa’s plans with the ball failed in their previous Test, as their four-bowler pace attack was unable to restrict New Zealand to a more acceptable score than the 482 they eventually posted in their first innings. Their batting, on the other hand, was a major letdown. The Proteas batting lineup collapsed for 95 runs in the first innings and could only muster 111 runs in the second.

The absence of a few key members who were instrumental in South Africa’s last victory has hampered the Test team, which is coming off a spirited 2-1 series win against a strong Indian side. Elgar also commented on the South African batters’ performance in the previous game, implying that it could have dampened their confidence after a below-par performance in the first game. The skipper’s comments hinted at a few possible changes to the playing eleven for the second Test, which begins on February 25th.

“I’m sure there are guys who are a little bit low in confidence, especially batting-wise,” Elgar said after his team suffered their second-worst Test defeat in history.

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