Specially for red-the low down on Smith's elbow.

http://www.cricket365.com/story/0,18305,6673_4098387,00.html

In the wake of South Africa's dismal ODI series performance against England, question marks surrounding absent captain Graeme Smith's mysterious 'elbow injury' are growing.


Various theories have emerged as to the exact origin and seriousness of the supposed injury and in their never-failing, never-tiring, never-say-die quest to uncover the truth behind cricket's deepest mysteries, NFS's crack team of investigators have been burning the midnight linseed oil to get to the bottom of the Proteas skipper's layoff.


The injury, which had been labelled as "tennis elbow" according to an official SA Cricket statement, is the consequence of repeated short, abrupt, repetitive movements of the elbow and forearm.


It has come to NFS's attention that Smith's injury is not a first for the left hander. In fact Mrs. Smith, the skipper's mother, has revealed that the problem first reared its ugly head in his early teen years.


"It first started when Graemeie became friends with a boy who fielded at midwicket," said Mrs. Smith.


"They used to swap cricket magazines, though Graemeie would never show them to me. He'd read those magazines in his room for hours. He's always really been a student of the game."


Not only is the problem not new for the first SA captain to win a Test series in England since the '60s, but he seems particularly prone to the injury when on tour.


"Giegie often gets bachelor elbow - that what he calls it - when he's away from home for a long time," said former girlfriend and model Minki van der Easthuizen.


"But that doesn't mean he stops working on his game. Is bottom hand isn't so strong for nothing you know."


In fact it's Smith's work ethic that could be behind the over-use injury, according to analyst Hundredanel Evenis Nelson.


"Smith has been tossing a lot. No one works on his tossing action like he does. You don't win three out of four tosses in a Test series for nothing," said Nelson.


Mohamed Asif was asked for his opinion as to the possibility of such a recurring injury amongst cricketers, but could shed little light on the question.


"Yes, that's right. Tennis elbow, it was a treatment for tennis elbow. I was just treating an injury, that's how it got into my bloodstream. I'm innocent I tell you," said the Pakistani.


While all these theories carry some weight it seems the consistent weight of the load in Smith's elbow is the most likely cause for the injury, at least according to the Proteas management.


A secret microphone, hidden in Mark Boucher's spare 'box' and thus inside the team's change rooms recorded a conversation between one of the medical staff and manager Mickey Arthur.


"Biff's injury is not dissimilar to the injury Jakes had a while back," said the voice.


"But Biff's is clearly jack-'n-lime elbow, while The Rock usually suffers from Amstel elbow."


Whatever the origin of the malaise, Smith's absence from the oval has been met with fierce criticism back in the Republic where members of Parliament's Sports Portfolio Committee were flabbergasted that such an injury could occur.


"Tennis elbow? Why are they playing tennis? Aren't they supposed to be cricket players? These whities are taking chances now," said a spokesman, Dhunowat Mtalkingabout.


Meanwhile, French sports injury expert Jean-Claude Tochmibals has offered an opinion of his own.


"Peut etre s'ils n'arretaient pas à jouer pour boire du té tous les demi-heures, ils seront un peu plus coustauds, eh?" (What a shame, he should try rubbing his elbow with some lavander, no?), said Tochmibals.


Ross Hastie