Communication gap leaves Ntini disappointed

Shortly after being left out of South Africa's limited-overs squads to face Kenya and Bangladesh at home, Makhaya Ntini has expressed disappointment at not being informed of his exclusion. Mickey Arthur, the South African coach, however said attempts were made at contacting Ntini, but to no avail.

"It's all new to me. No one called me," Ntini told Volksblad. "I am very disappointed that Mickey or the captain [Graeme Smith] did not talk to me about it. I still saw Mickey at the airport in Johannesburg on Monday."

Arthur confirmed he was on the same flight with Ntini but was before the team was picked. "We managed to get in touch with all of them, with the exception of Makhaya," Arthur said. "We left four messages for him."

Ntini was unimpressive in the one-day series on the tour of England, picking up two wickets in three games and leaking more than five-and-a-half an over. Since the 2007 World Cup, he has taken 26 wickets in 24 ODIs at 38.73, far less impressive than his career average of 24.54.

He was, however, included in the Test squad for the two-match series against Bangladesh. With the first Test to begin on November 19, Ntini will be available for his franchise, the Warriors, for the SuperSport series, starting with their match against the Eagles in Port Elizabeth on Thursday.

"I can't sit around doing nothing during those weeks," he said. "I am terribly excited. And it's a home match, too."