Reports | Cricket South Africa deny Rassie van der Dussen NOC to play in IPL 2021

Things could go from bad to worse for seventh-placed Rajasthan Royals as reports have emerged that the franchise might fail to acquire the services of South Africa’s Rassie van der Dussen. Following the injury to Ben Stokes, it was widely reported that Rajasthan had zeroed in on van der Dussen as a replacement, and there were sources that even claimed that the right-handed batsman would be available for the entirety of the second half of IPL 2021.

However, it has now emerged that the Royals have stumbled upon a major roadblock as Cricket South Africa (CSA) have allegedly refused to issue van der Dussen a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to participate in the T20 tournament.

ESPN Cricinfo reports that van der Dussen got a visa to fly to India but was then not issued a NOC by CSA, who are believed to have raised concerns over the batsman’s fitness. Van der Dussen missed the final ODI and two T20Is vs Pakistan owing to a quad injury, and it is believed that CSA are not keen on risking one of their main all-format batters by giving him the green signal to feature in the IPL. 

Van der Dussen aside, however, the Royals have successfully completed the signing of another South African, Gerald Coetzee. The franchise completed the signing of the 20-year-old pace bowler from South Africa on Saturday, and the youngster will be replacing Liam Livingstone, who pulled out of IPL 2021 citing bubble fatigue.