South Africa English news | South Africa, Latest News & Live Updates in English | English News (Latest English News) at Lokmattimes.com

Having already lost to England, Bangladesh and India earlier, the loss to Pakistan was the last nail in the coffin for Faf du Plessis' men. And while du Plessis spoke on Sunday about how he and a few others wanted some of the top players to not play the IPL this season, Cricket South Africa even had a meeting with the team management to decide on the release of the players for the T20 league."CEO Thabang Moroe, President Chris Nenzani and coach Ottis Gibson even had meetings on the release of the players for the IPL. This was during the series against Sri Lanka. While I am not aware if the team management also wanted the players to return early and attend a camp before leaving for England, there was some debate on the release keeping an eye also on the workload. But the players were keen to be a part of the IPL from the beginning," a CSA official told .In fact, the moment Kagiso Rabada complained of a stiff back, he was asked to pack his bag and return to South Africa and stay fresh for the World Cup. But the ploy clearly didn't work much as the pacer finished with six wickets from six games with best figures of 2/39 against India. More than the wickets, it was his average speed that dropped and it didn't miss the eye of skipper Faf.Speaking after the loss on Sunday, du Plessis admitted that efforts were made to stop some of the players from playing in the IPL to ensure they remained fit and fresh for the World Cup."We did try and get him not to go to the IPL; to try and stay and get fresh. That wasn't the case of and then when he went there, we were like, let's try and get him back halfway through the IPL because it's important, not just for him, but a few other players. And KG is-you can see that his pace is probably a little bit down from where he normally is," the skipper said.Interestingly, when asked about managing the workload in the IPL, Rabada had said: "Bowling four overs is not an issue. It is the travel and the rest of the commitments that come with it that become difficult to handle."All-rounder Chris Morris had also made it clear during the IPL that he wasn't too worried about workload management with the World Cup round the corner. "I train when I have to and rest when I have to. I am not going to subdue my training, if someone tells me," the Delhi Capitals player had said.(Baidurjo Bhose can be contacted at baidurjo.b@.in)( With inputs from IANS )

South AfricaFOLLOW

South africa, Latest News

Sri Lanka will look to make their case strong for a semi-finals berth when they play against South Africa in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup on Friday at The Riverside Durham. ...

Sri Lanka will aim for nothing but a win to keep themselves alive in the ongoing World Cup when they take on South Africa at the Riverside Cricket Stadium on Friday. ...

"Personal achievements don't matter to me, victory of the team does," says 24-year-old Babar Azam who kept Pakistan alive in the ongoing World Cup as they defeated New Zealand in their crucial fixture. ...

Former Proteas all-rounder Jacques Kallis has urged the current South African team to take inspiration from England in a bid to revive their ODI performance following their early stage exit from the ongoing World Cup in England and Wales. ...

Former Pakistan speedster Wasim Akram has advised Safaraz Ahmed not to tinker with the winning combination and go with an unchanged playing XI against New Zealand in their crucial World Cup match to be played on Wednesday at Edgbaston. ...

South Africa batsman David Miller did some self-evaluation regarding his performance in the World Cup as he said there had been lack of execution due to which he failed to give out big performances. ...

Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Monday invited applications from national and overseas players, including Kolpak cricketers, interested to compete in Mzansi Super League 2.0 (MSL 2.0). ...

South Africa's unceremonious exit from the 2019 edition of the World Cup on Sunday came as no shocker as they looked like a team which wasn't prepared to challenge the best in the business. While the lack of preparedness was evident in their performa ...