Image courtesy of: The Age
India’s tour of South Africa will have to be trimmed down
Just days after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) proposed to host the West Indies for a series in November, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) have shown a lot of interest and it is highly likely the series will feature two Test matches and three ODIs.
A BCCI official told ESPNcricinfo that the West Indies are all set to play “two Tests and three ODIs starting in the first week of November”.
The series will be confirmed once the tour, programme and fixtures committee finalises the dates with the WICB.
If the series does go ahead, it would mean that India will not be able to reach South Africa until November 30, for a series that was scheduled to start on November 18 with the Indians taking on the South African Invitation XI in a Twenty20.
Also, with India’s tour of New Zealand set to commence on January 19, which was supposed to be the last day of their South African tour, it would mean that their series against the Proteas will have to be trimmed down even further.
However, the BCCI official who has been in negotiations with Cricket South Africa reiterated that the tour was not being called off.
“We understand we have a commitment and we want to tour South Africa, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t safeguard our players’ and board’s interests,” the official said.
The BCCI have also demanded that there be “at least a week’s break” between the South Africa and New Zealand series, which means that India’s original plan to play three Tests, seven ODIs and two Twenty20 Internationals will have to be altered to two Tests, three ODIs and a one-off Twenty20 International.
With this being the case, Cricket South Africa may have no choice but to agree to whatever itinerary the BCCI decide upon.
The official added that the ever increasing tension between the two boards has made his job of finalising a tour schedule extremely difficult.
“Just because an FTP was announced many years ago doesn’t mean you should announce the tour itinerary without even consulting us,” the official said.