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SA vs PAK, 2nd T20I: Why Rassie Van Der Dussen Has Been Demoted In The Batting Order?

Probuddha Bhattacharjee

Rassie van der Dussen For South Africa in T20Is [Source: @Squarecut45_/x.com]Rassie van der Dussen For South Africa in T20Is [Source: @Squarecut45_/x.com]

Pakistan and South Africa are facing each other in the second T20I of the three match series. This is a crucial match in the context of the series. The home team put in a brilliant show in the first match of the series and won the game to take a 1-0 lead in the series. 

The Heinrich Klaasen-led side is aiming to win this match and seal off the series before the final game. On the other hand Pakistan is keen on showing a better performance in this match and keep the series alive till the decider.

Why Rassie van der Dussen Is Not Opening For SA?

In what turns out to be the latest development, Rassie van der Dussen is not opening for South Africa. There may be two reasons behind this demotion in order for Rassie.

Ryan Rickelton returning to the side - Ryan Rickelton, the regular opener of South Africa in white ball format was not available for selection during the first T20I of the series. He was a part of the Test squad that was playing against Sri Lanka at home. The first T20I started immediately one day after the end of the Test match. This one of the reasons, South Africa decided to use Rassie van der Dussen as the opener. However, with Rickelton returning for this game, they were happy to go back to their normal batting order.

Rassie van der Dussen's golden duck in the first match - Notably, while opening the innings in the first T20I, RVD scored a golden duck. If he was successful at that position, the team management could have shuffled the team composition in this game to keep him there. However, the failure prompted them to demote him down the order with the return of Ryan Rickelton in the mix.