Cape Town - Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Teko Modise believes his team-mate Hlompho Kekana had been unfairly overlooked by Bafana Bafana in the past.
Kekana has been picked sparingly for the national team throughout his career, making just 10 caps for the South African national team since making his debut in 2011 against Tanzania.
The 31-year-old has finally been able to establish himself in the Bafana squad, but Modise believes he should've been given more chances earlier on.
"In South Africa you don't choose to play for Bafana Bafana and your performances as well don't determine that you are guaranteed to play for Bafana Bafana," he told KickOff.
"The coaches themselves are the ones that sit down and check, but sometimes you question. Sometimes I sit down and question myself.
"What's the criteria of them choosing a player to come and play for Bafana Bafana, but then maybe I'm wrong because I'm still a footballer as well. I don't know what the criteria is.
"But I feel that Kekana has been the most dominate midfielder in the country for the last two years. He should have been playing for Bafana Bafana a long time ago.
"Now there's pressure because Sundowns won the league and all eyes were on us, so now they (Kekana, Tebogo Langerman and Asavela Mbekile) had to be selected."