Bosman injury not as serious as feared

Loots Bosman being carried off the field after hurting his back while attempting to catch Tatenda Taibu in the second ODI at Harare © Getty Images

Loots Bosman is a doubtful starter for the Twenty20 World Championship after hurting his lower back while attempting a catch in the second ODI against Zimbabwe at Harare on Saturday. Initial reports suggested Bosman might require surgery, but Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, indicated that the injury might not be so serious.

"Loots has been examined by a specialist in Johannesburg and it seems it's not as serious as we thought," Arthur was quoted as saying by News 24. "We will know later in the week what the position is."

Bosman suffered the injury when trying to catch Tatenda Taibu off Dale Steyn at the boundary. He failed in his attempt, and instead crashed into the advertising boards, hurting his back in the process. He was carried off the field in a lot of pain and didn't bat later in the afternoon.

Bosman hasn't had a lot of success in one-day internationals so far, but he has been a star in the domestic Twenty20 matches, scoring 679 runs in 23 games at 32.33 and a phenomenal strike rate of 147.93, with a highest score of 104.