Schedule for India's tour to South Africa finalised
What's the story?
After a lot of deliberation, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Cricket South Africa (CSA) have finally fixed the schedule for the India-South Africa Test series.
The series will begin the New Years Test, which will take place on January 5. In total, there will be three Tests, six ODIs, and three T20Is.
The Virat Kohli led side will land in South Africa on December 28 and will play a two-day practice match at Boland park on December 30 and 31.
In case you didn't know...
There was a lot of confusion with regards to when the series would begin. Initially, it was supposed to begin towards the end of December with India playing the famous Boxing Day Test as well.
However, due to some issues between the two boards and the limited time of preparation for the Indian side, the Boxing Day Test was canceled.
Sri Lanka's tour to India will conclude only on Christmas Eve, hence it would take some time for India to travel to South Africa and get acclimatised to the conditions.
The details:
As per tradition, the New Years Test is always played from January 2 at Newlands. The CSA even tried convincing BCCI to begin the Test on January 4 to ensure a large crowd for the match.
However, BCCI were stern in their argument and wanted enough time for its players to get some practice before the first Test.
South Africa, too, have a packed schedule as they will be playing a Boxing Day Test before they take on India. Shortly after India's tour, they will be taking on Australia in March.
The schedule is given below:
1st Test: January 5-9, Cape Town
2nd Test: January 13-17, Centurion
3rd Test: January 24-28, Johannesburg
1st ODI: Feb 1, Durban
2nd ODI: Feb 4, Centurion
3rd ODI: Feb 7, Cape Town
4th ODI: Feb 10, Jo'Burg
5th: Feb 13, Port Elizabeth
6th ODI, Feb 16, Centurion
1st T20I, Feb 18, Jo'burg
2nd T20I, Feb 21, Centurion
3rd T20I, Feb 24, Cape Town
What's next?
The venues for the matches are yet to be finalised. However, if reports are to be believed, Cape Town will host the first Test.
Author's take
It's extremely good that the two boards are finally coming to a decision as to when to begin the series. There is a quite a bit of bad blood between the BCCI and Haroon Lorgat, but it is important to keep the differences aside and keep the player's interests and preferences as the top priority.
The Test series between the two sides will surely be a treat for cricket lovers and the Indians can expect a stern challenge from the Proteas.