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South Africa in England 2008
Gibbs included in South Africa's ODI squad
Cricinfo staff
August 5, 2008
South Africa have named a 15-man squad for the one-off Twenty20 international and five-match ODI series against England. Herschelle Gibbs, who had expressed doubts over his international career after being left out of the Test squad, has been included, as has Dale Steyn, who was ruled out of the final two Tests against England with a broken thumb.
"The squad is made up of the players who have done well for us over the past year and we have every confidence they will regain the No. 1 ranking from Australia," Joubert Strydom, the convenor of selectors, said. "The only player no longer part of the mix is Charl Langeveldt, who is no longer available." Langeveldt, who had opted out of the tour of India earlier this year following his controversial selection ahead of Andre Nel, joined Derbyshire on a two-year Kolpak contract.
"We have included Hashim Amla as the 15th player in the squad because of the heavy workload that Graeme Smith has had to carry and the injuries he has suffered recently," Strydom said. "Hashim played in our most recent ODI series against Bangladesh and he will provide the cover in the opening batting area."
The selection of an additional player, Strydom said, was "more than justified" given that there were nine limited-overs games, including the warm-up matches.
Smith had suffered a back injury while batting in the tour game against Bangladesh A. However, he played the subsequent Test at Edgbaston, leading South Africa to a five-wicket win with an unbeaten 154.
Jacques Kallis and Makhaya Ntini, who had been rested for the Bangladesh ODIs, return to the squad, in place of Alviro Petersen and Charl Langeveldt.
Gerald Majola, Cricket South Africa's chief executive, congratulated the team on their triumph in the Test series and looked forward to further success on the tour. "The Proteas' first Test series win in England since unity in 1991 is a fantastic achievement and one that has made the whole country immensely proud," Majola said. "We hope now that Graeme Smith and his players can finish off the Test series at The Oval with another high-quality performance before turning their attention to Twenty20 and ODI cricket."
The Oval Test starts on August 7. South Africa then play three warm-up matches before the Twenty20 international on August 20.
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