A Pretoria man who faces private prosecution by lobby group AfriForum for the rape of his grandchild when she was three years old, was involved in a motorbike accident, the Pretoria Magistrate's Court heard on Thursday.

The accused, who cannot be named to protect the child's identity, was badly injured in the accident and was unable to attend the proceedings on Thursday.

A doctor's certificate was submitted to the court. It stated that he would be in a position to attend court on June 24, and the case was postponed to September 12.

A warrant of arrest for the accused has been authorised and will be held over. This means that he will be arrested if he does not appear on the next court date.

Nel, Roux face-off

The rape allegedly happened in 2016 and in 2017. The mother of the child approached AfriForum to take on the case. It will be the organisation's first private prosecution.

The child reported the incident to her parents and AfriForum had said that her account was confirmed by a psychologist, News24 previously reported.

Advocates Gerrie Nel and Barry Roux, who were both absent from the proceedings on Thursday, will face off when the case goes ahead.

Roux will be representing the accused.

Nel, who was a prosecutor for the State, joined AfriForum's private prosecution unit after he made his mark in the trial of disgraced Paralympian, Oscar Pistorius, who was found guilty of killing his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day in 2014.

Both advocates were involved in the Pistorius trial.