Kagiso Rabada, South Africa's pace spearhead, remains resentful about the scheduling fiasco that caused him and other senior players to miss a two-Test series against New Zealand earlier this year. Rabada claims that they were not consulted about the 'unacceptable' botch-up.
The series was part of the World Test Championship, and despite first-choice players being involved in the SA20 league at home, as many as seven uncapped players were named for the series.
Neil Brand made his Test debut during the opening game in Mount Maunganui while captaining the team in New Zealand. The hosts won the series 2-0.
Reflecting on that controversial episode, Rabada expressed hope that players would not have to go through such unsavoury moments again:
"It was very very unacceptable and remains unacceptable to date. It was obviously a planning issue. It is unacceptable, that is all I would say about that."
Rabada, currently playing for Punjab Kings in the IPL, expressed strong support for the uncapped South African players who were put in an awkward situation through no fault of their own.
This is a scheduling issue that has to do with the events at Cricket South Africa. It was a double booking. The success of the young SA20 league relied heavily on the presence of star South African players, but unfortunately, Test cricket suffered as a result.