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Rilee Rossouw gets opportunity to make mark for South Africa in Tests against West Indies

Rossouw has a first-class average of 44.83 and was eighth on last season's first-class run-scorers' list.

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Rilee Rossouw recently shined with bat for South Africa A in their tour of Australia © Getty Images
Rilee Rossouw recently shined with bat for South Africa A in their tour of Australia © Getty Images

Rilee Rossouw has been included in the South Africa squad for the Test series against West Indies as a replacement for Quinton de Kock, who was ruled out due to an ankle ligament injury. Sandipan Banerjee takes a look at Rossouw’s career so far and his chances in the upcoming games.

Rilee Rossouw is a highly rated left-hand top-order batsman who has had an interesting career so far. The selectors must be backing him for some reason despite his early failures in international cricket.

Since his teens, Rossouw made mark at the age group cricket and subsequently at the domestic level. He made his First-Class debut for Free States at 18 and scored a gutsy 83 against Easterns. The innings earned him a lot of praise. Next year, he was selected in South Africa Under-19 for the 2008 World Cup.

It was in 2008-09 that Rossouw showcased his potential. He finished season as the leading run-scorer for Eagles. He began the next season with a hundred against Cape Cobras during which he became one of the youngest South Africans to register 1,000 First-Class runs.

His performance dipped subsequently. It took Rossouw four years, but he made his debut in One-Day Internationals (ODIs), starting his career with two ducks on the trot. He got a run for the Proteas during their recent tour of Australia. He showed his true potential on his T20 International (T20I) debut at Adelaide Oval with a match-winning 78. He also scored 51 — his maiden ODI fifty — at SCG on the same tour.

Rossouw has a first-class average of 44.83 and was eighth on last season’s first-class run-scorers’ list. Though he has only played one First-Class match this summer but enjoyed a successful late winter tour of Australia, where he scored a double-century for South Africa A against Australia A. The innings was probably the reason for his selection.

Having said that, Rossouw will probably be a bit rusty. He has not played any cricket since December 12 as he was nursing a finger injury — a fact that makes his selection somewhat bizarre. Before selecting him in the playing eleven, the team management would have to be sure about his fitness.

If he finally manages to get fit on time than it will be a golden opportunity for him to showcase his talent against the West Indians, whose morale are bit down after the debacle in the first Test. A good performance in the longer format may even earn him a place in the World Cup squad.

(Sandipan Banerjee is a reporter at CricketCountry. Cricket has been the biggest passion for him since his childhood. So, when it came to choosing his career, he chose to turn his passion into his profession. Apart from cricket he likes mountain trekking, river rafting, and photography. His twitter handle is @im_sandipan)

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