BY DEAN CLOETE
Former Rondebosch Boys High scholar Dayyaan Galiem se dag was gemaak on Thursday when he was called up to the Proteas T20I side in place of injured fast bowler Anrich Nortje.
The 27-year-old Kaapse allrounder, who now plies his trade for the Titans from Centurion, cracked the nod for the two remaining T20Is against Pakistan – the first of which will be played on his domestic home turf tonight at 6pm.
A statement released by Cricket South Africa on Thursday reads: “Warriors fast bowler Anrich Nortje has been ruled out of the remainder of the T20I series against Pakistan and the proceeding three-match ODI series due to a left toe injury.
“The 31-year-old was initially ruled out of the first T20I on Tuesday after sustaining a contusion to his left big toe during training ahead of the opening match. Subsequent scans on Wednesday revealed a fracture.
“He will consult with a specialist orthopaedic surgeon to determine the recovery period.”
The statement adds: “Titans allrounder Dayyaan Galiem has been named as his replacement for the remaining two T20Is at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Friday, 13 December and the Wanderers on Saturday, 14 December.”
After winning the first match by 11 runs – thanks in large to a vuurwarm 82 off 40 balls by David Miller – the Proteas are looking to wrap up the series tonight.
Miller says: “We are very determined [to win the series], it’s been a while since we last won a series.
“It was great to start on the front foot and pulling everything together to get 180 and then bowling well in the first match.
“Hopefully we can keep going.”
He adds of the mood in the camp: “The energy and the vibe in the squad are always good. If you look at the series [we lost], we tried a few different combinations. It’s not great losing series, hence we want to try and correct that in this series and start the series against Pakistan heading into the ODIs and Tests well.”