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       CAPE TOWN: First-choice spinner Keshav Maharaj was on Thursday ruled out of the ongoing One-day International series against Pakistan and is a doubt for the crucial two-Test home series against the sub-continent side that starts on Dec 26.

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       Maharaj has a left adductor strain and will miss the 50-over fixtures in Cape Town on Thursday and Johannesburg on Sunday, but of much greater concern will be the 34-year-olds availability for the Test series.

       South Africa are top of the World Test Champio-nship table and need victory in one of their two remaining matches aga-inst Pakistan to guarantee a place at the Lords final in June next year.

       Should Maharaj be unavailable, the only specialist spinner in the Test squad is the less experienced Senuran Muthusamy. Bjorn Fortuin was named as his replacement for the final two ODIs.

       Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2024