News24.com | Awkward confusion as selectors stay vague over prolific Rickelton's Proteas' absence

Ryan Rickelton. (Photo by Lee Warren/Gallo Images)

• Ryan Rickelton's omission from the Proteas' ODI squad against England has left the national selection panel in an awkward position.
• The prolific left-hander, the leading run-scorer in the One-Day Cup this season, missed the Test tour of Australia because CSA didn't clear him medically but continued playing domestically.
• Nothing has changed since, with CSA now saying he was overlooked because of a lack of spots in the squad of 16. 

Confusion lingers over Ryan Rickelton's current eligibility for the Proteas after he was overlooked for the short but all-important three-match ODI series against England starting next week.

The prolific left-hander was surprisingly left out of the Test squad for the tour to Australia back in December after Cricket South Africa's medical staff ruled his longstanding ankle ligament injury rendered him too much of a risk, ostensibly in terms of the logistics of flying out a replacement should he not have been able to play.

That, however, was at odds with the Lions' assessment, who were more than comfortable selecting him to play domestically after Rickelton opted to manage the injury through a cocktail of platelet and cortisone injections as well as regular rehab exercises.

He did so to avoid an operation that would sideline him for at least two months, meaning he'd miss the SA20 and the meat of the local international season.

It's understood he plans to go under the knife later in the year.

Meanwhile, Rickelton continued to relentlessly pile up the runs, scoring two centuries in the 4-Day Series and then ending the One-Day Cup as the leading run-scorer with 452 runs at an average of 65 and a strike rate of 103.

Given that he shows no signs of discomfort, the situation has now become a tad awkward.

Victor Mpitsang, CSA's convener of selectors, conceded that Rickelton's medical status is no longer a stumbling block and that his latest omission is down to limited spots in the squad.    

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"Look, Ryan has performed really well this summer to date. He's been performing particularly well in the past few weeks. The question we've had to ask ourselves is where does Ryan fit into the team currently?

"He's an opening batsman with good numbers, but he's just one of those players - in a squad of 16 - that we couldn't find a space for," he said.

But what has changed CSA medical staff's view on the injury?  

"I'm pretty sure his opportunity will come. We've had a conversation with the medical staff, who made it clear to us that, because we're playing at home for the next while, the risk [associated with Ryan's ankle injury] isn't as high as [having to replace him] when you're playing overseas," said Mpitsang. 

"I've had that conversation with him and he had a very specific date for an operation when we talked before the Australia tour. We'll definitely have more conversations with him and where he fits in ahead of the West Indies tour."

Mpitsang also still needs clarity on when the operation will take place. 

"I don't know the date for his procedure, but he's definitely eligible to be selected."

The ODI series against England starts on 27 January in Bloemfontein.