 Pollock is South Africa's most successful bowler in Test cricket |
South Africa have been boosted by the news experienced all-rounder Shaun Pollock will link up with them in Sri Lanka well ahead of the second Test. The Proteas are already without captain Graeme Smith and all-rounder Jacques Kallis for the two-Test series.
There were fears 33-year-old Pollock would also miss both matches after the birth of his second child.
But he will arrive on Thursday - the day the first Test starts - and is available for next week's second game.
Makhaya Ntini, Andre Nel and Dale Steyn are likely to make up South Africa's pace attack in the absence of Pollock, who has scored 3,444 runs and taken 394 wickets from 101 Tests.
South Africa will be led by Ashwell Prince, with Smith sidelined by an ankle injury, while Kallis is also staying at home as he recovers from a tennis elbow injury.
Meanwhile AB de Villiers and Jacques Rudolph hit half-centuries on the final day of the tourists' warm-up match against Sri Lanka A.
The South Africans batted until tea before making a token declaration, leaving the hosts an impossible task of chasing 549 runs for victory off 35 overs at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo.
By stumps, as the game petered out to a draw, Sri Lanka A were 89 for 1.
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