Cricket-South Africa's Nortje eyes test return against Australia after lengthy absence

Cricket - First Test - South Africa v West Indies - SuperSport Park Cricket Stadium, Centurion, South Africa - March 1, 2023 South Africa's Anrich Nortje looks at the ball before bowling REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo

DURBAN, Oct 4 (Reuters) - South Africa fast bowler ⁠Anrich Nortje could make a remarkable return to first-class cricket after an absence of almost four years to ⁠help an injury-hampered South Africa attack in the first test against Australia, which starts in Durban ‌on Friday.

With fitness doubts over pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada and three other bowlers ruled out with hamstring injuries, Nortje is set to return to red-ball cricket for the first time since South Africa's test victory over West Indies in March 2023.

That match, in which he took 5-36 in the ​first innings, was Nortje's last first-class appearance.

A succession of injury setbacks, as ⁠he struggled with back and hip problems, subsequently ⁠led him to focus on the shorter formats, where bowling in brief spells has helped reduce the strain on his ⁠body.

The ‌32-year-old has evolved into a T20 specialist, but said on Sunday he had been working on his red-ball skills.

"It's been quite a bit of a focus for me to try and execute skills with the red ball, ⁠to build loads gradually and in the right way try and get ​the overs up,” he told reporters ‌on Sunday.

“It's something that I've been doing for quite some time. There's been quite some effort put ⁠in to try and ​upskill again, and improve from where I left off.

"I'll be very excited if I can put my test cap on again. Growing up, it's the format you want to play. It's the motivation when you train," he added.

Nortje has featured in 19 tests with a ⁠bowling average of 26.71 and regularly bowled at speeds in excess ​of 145kph – with his action taking a heavy toll on his body.

TEST CRICKET BRINGS OUT EXTRAFIRE

"You don't think of the tough times in T20 cricket. You just think about executing skills there, whereas in tests, you think about the tough times, the ⁠good times, the hard work and think that gets you through some sessions.

"There's just that little bit of extra X-factor that comes out, or fire that comes out, and energy that comes out," Nortje added. "Guys want to do well, and everyone wants to perform. It is a big series."

South Africa started an intra-squad match on Sunday and late Monday will cut ​their preliminary squad from 18 to 15, with Nortje expected to make the ⁠cut despite his lengthy absence.

"The guys have grown quite a bit,” he said of the test side which has since gone ​on to win the World Test Championship, beating Australia in mid-2025.

“They've played a ‌lot and they've done really well. Hopefully, I can just ​add on to that. I'm very keen to get going and be on the park and try to do well for the country," Nortje added.

(Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Toby Davis)

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板球 - 首场测试赛 - 南非对阵西印度群岛 - 南非森图里昂超级体育公园板球场 - 2023年3月1日 南非球员安里奇·诺特杰在投球前注视着球 路透社/西菲韦·西贝科/资料照片

德班，10 月 4 日（路透社）——南非快速投球手安里奇·诺特杰在阔别一流板球赛场近四年后，有望重返赛场，帮助伤兵满营的南非队在周五于德班开赛的对阵澳大利亚的首场测试赛中取得佳绩。

由于速度主力卡吉索·拉巴达的身体状况存疑，另有三名投手因腿筋受伤而缺席，诺特杰将自 2023 年 3 月南非队在测试赛中战胜西印度群岛队以来首次重返红球板球赛场。

那场比赛，他在第一局取得了 5-36 的成绩，也是诺特杰最后一次参加一级联赛。

由于背部和髋部问题不断，伤病接连不断，这导致他转而专注于短局比赛，在短局比赛中投球有助于减轻身体的压力。

这位 32 岁的球员已经成长为一名 T20 专家，但他周日表示，他一直在努力提高自己的红球技术。

“我一直非常注重练习用红球施展技巧，逐步增加投球量，以正确的方式努力提高投球局数，”他周日告诉记者。

“这件事我已经做了很久了。我投入了相当多的精力来提升技能，并在我之前的基础上有所进步。”

“如果能再次戴上国家队帽子，我会非常兴奋。从小到大，这就是我最想参加的比赛形式，也是我训练的动力，”他补充道。

诺特杰参加了 19 场测试赛，平均投球得分为 26.71，经常以超过 145 公里/小时的速度投球——他的投球动作对他的身体造成了很大的负担。

板球测试赛激发了额外的激情

“在T20板球比赛中，你不会去想那些艰难的时刻。你只会想着如何发挥自己的技术。而在测试赛中，你会想到那些艰难的时刻、美好的时刻、艰苦的努力，并认为这些能帮助你度过一些比赛阶段。”

“就是那种额外的、更胜一筹的特质，或者说那种激情和能量，”诺特杰补充道。“每个人都想表现出色，每个人都想有所作为。这是一场重要的系列赛。”

南非队于周日开始进行队内对抗赛，并将于周一晚些时候将初步名单从 18 人缩减至 15 人，尽管诺特杰长期缺席，但预计他仍将入选。

“队员们进步很大，”他谈到这支后来赢得世界测试锦标赛冠军的队伍时说道，他们在 2025 年年中击败了澳大利亚队。

“他们打了很多比赛，而且表现非常出色。希望我能在此基础上更进一步。我非常渴望尽快上场比赛，为国家争光，”诺特耶补充道。

（马克·格里森在开普敦撰稿；托比·戴维斯编辑）

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