3TC Cricket | Kagiso Rabada, Chris Morris to miss experimental Solidarity Cup in Centurion
With the CSA Solidarity Cup just being a couple of days away from action, Kagiso Rabada and Chris Morris have pulled out of the exhibition match on July 18. While Rabada had to take the decision due to the death of an immediate family member, Chris Morris hasn’t given any reason for his absence.
The experimental three-team match that was originally planned for June 27 and later had moved to July 18 after Cricket South Africa failed to obtain government permission to play will see three teams playing in a single match in a never-seen-before contest at the Supersport Park in Centurion. However, what has come as a big jolt for the event marketing team that Kagiso Rabada and Chris Morris have pulled out of the Solidarity Cup. Sisanda Magala will also miss the game due to the death of an immediate family member.
While Heinrich Klaasen will now replace Rabada as the captain of the Kingfishers, AB de Villiers and Quinton de Kock will captain the two other eight-member teams for the contest that would mark the return of cricket in the country for the first time since the pandemic struck.
The venue for the game, Supersport Park that is located in Gauteng province which happens to be the epicenter of the pandemic. However, the match will be played behind closed doors and the funds that will be raised in the process will go to CSA's Hardship Funds to help those who have lost their livelihoods during the pandemic.
While CSA’s director of Cricket Graeme Smith has already announced that they would support the Black Lives Matter Movement, the board is yet to announce the exact gesture.