Donald called back for Kenya

Champion fast bowler Allan Donald returns to the South African team for the ICC Knockout tournament in Kenya in Nairobi, but Daryll Cullinan, the centre piece of South Africa's batting for several years, has been left out.

Cullinan, who had to be arm-wrestled into playing one-day cricket by the United Cricket Board earlier this year, may not be entirely unhappy about missing out on Nairobi, but his omission will provide an opportunity for the likes of Neil McKenzie and Boeta Dippenaar to further establish themselves in the team.

The only surprise selection in the squad is Shafiek Abrahams, the 32-year-old off-spinner from Eastern Province. There will not, however, be a great deal of debate over Abrahams' place in the squad. A consistent, if unspectacular provincial performer, Abrahams is a handy fielder and a useful lower-order bat. If, as the selectors clearly expect, the pitches in Nairobi to play lower and slower as the tournament goes on, he may well come into the reckoning when and if South Africa progress in what is effectively a mini-World Cup.

More to the point is why Abrahams was not selected as back-up to Paul Adams in Sri Lanka two months' ago. Instead, when Adams was suffering from injury, the selectors' opted for Abrahams' inexperienced provincial team-mate Robin Peterson.

As it happened, Peterson was not called upon to make his international debut and Abrahams may now be rewarded for steady service at provincial level.

Cullinan's omission is not altogether surprising. After fashioning a well-crafted century in the first Test against Sri Lanka, his form gradually fell away and by the time South Africa arrived in Singapore on their way back to South Africa from Australia last month, he was battling to get the ball off the square.

There seems little doubt that he will remain an automatic choice in the South African Test team, but his future as a one-day player is open to speculation. Cullinan tried to back off one-day cricket for family reasons at the beginning of the year, but the offer of a two-year contract persuaded him otherwise. Time at home with his wife and young son could well leave him refreshed and rejuvenated by the time South Africa's Test matches start against New Zealand this summer.

Donald is another who might feel better off for time away from international cricket. There can be little doubt that he has watched the remarkable achievements of the great West Indian duo Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose this English summer and recognised that skill and craft can compensate for the passing of the years.

It is also probably true that while Donald is able to feel at home in the workaday ethic of county cricket, he has missed the challenge of playing at the highest level. A dedicated athlete, Donald is likely to come back anxious to prove that he is able to come back as a competitor.

Certainly, his presence will lift some of the weight off captain Shaun Pollock who has not found the burden of leading both the attack and the team easy.

The full squad is: Shaun Pollock (Capt., KwaZulu-Natal), Mark Boucher (vice-capt. Border), Shafiek Abrahams (Eastern Province), Nicky Boje (Free State), Boeta Dippenaar (Free State), Allan Donald (Free State), Andrew Hall (Gauteng), Jacques Kallis (Western Province), Gary Kirsten (Western Province), Lance Klusener (KwaZulu-Natal), Neil McKenzie (Northerns), Makhaya Ntini (Border), Jonty Rhodes (KwaZulu-Natal), Roger Telemachus (Western Province).

Manager: Goolam Rajah. Coach: Graham Ford. Assistant Coach: Corrie van Zyl. Physiotherapist: Craig Smith.