Centurion, First Published Dec 20, 2021, 11:15 PM IST
Centurion: No spectators will be allowed on India’s South African (SAvIND) tour. Team India will play three Tests and one ODI in South Africa. Earlier, it was reported that spectators would not be allowed in only the first Test at Centurion.
However, Cricket South Africa and the BCCI have decided not to allow spectators. The decision by both the cricket boards comes in the wake of the spread of the omicron variant of Kovid (Covid-19). This has been officially confirmed by Cricket South Africa.
The first Test between South Africa and India starts on December 26 at Centurion. Ticket sales for the second Test, which starts at Wanderers on January 3, have not even started. The Indian team arrived in South Africa on December 16 for a tour and is in a strict bio-bubble at a resort. The players have already started training. The four-day domestic cricket tournament in South Africa was postponed on Sunday in the wake of the Kovid expansion.
Team India will be led by Virat Kohli to overcome the embarrassment of not winning a Test series in South Africa. Vice-captain Rohit Sharma and spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Akshar Patel have been ruled out of the Indian Test squad due to injuries. Rohit has been replaced by India A skipper Priyank Panchal in the squad. In Rohit’s absence, KL Rahul was announced as the vice-captain of the Test team.
Indian Test Squad
Virat Kohli (capt), Priyank Panchal, KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket keeper), Wriddhiman Saha (wicket keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Jayant Yadav, , Mohammad Shami, Umesh Yadav, Jaspreet Bumra, Shardul Thakur, Mohammad Siraj.
Last Updated Dec 20, 2021, 11:15 PM IST
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