South Africa batsman Hashim Amla is to replace Graeme Smith at Surrey after the former Proteas captain was ruled out for the rest of the English season with a fractured right knee.
|Last Updated: May 22, 2014, 09:01 PM IST|Source: AFP
London: South Africa batsman Hashim Amla is to replace Graeme Smith at Surrey after the former Proteas captain was ruled out for the rest of the English season with a fractured right knee.
Smith is now set to return to his native South Africa, with Gary Wilson taking over the captaincy of soutt London-based Surrey.
Opening batsman Smith has been beset by injuries since he signed a three-year deal with Surrey in 2012.
Last year his first season at The Oval was cut short when he needed ankle surgery.
Alec Stewart, Surrey`s director of cricket, insisted Smith had done all he possibly could to play through the pain barrier but that surgery was now the only option for the 33-year-old left-hander.
"He`s done his very best to play through a lot of pain," Stewart told BBC London.
"He`s taken a lot of pain killers to get through the last 10 days or so," the former England captain added.
"But the scans showed the fracture and it was non-negotiable, he had to go for this operation.
"You have to accept it, and the good thing is we`ve been able to get Hashim Amla over at short notice.
"Cricket South Africa have been excellent with their dealings and we`ll have him for the majority of June and then we`ll see where we are after that."
Smith retired from international cricket after the final Test against Australia, in Cape Town in March, having scored over 9,000 runs in 117 Tests at an average of nearly 49 with 27 hundreds.
However, he stressed his exit from South Africa duty in no way affected his commitment to Surrey.
It was at The Oval where Amla became the first South Africa batsman to score a Test triple hundred when he made 311 not out against England in 2012.
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.