CSA WILL ALLOW INDIAN PLAYERS TO LEAVE TOUR MIDWAY IF COVID SITUATION WORSENS

Cricket South Africa (CSA) has allowed Team India to leave the upcoming Proteas tour midway if the COVID-19 situation worsens in South Africa amid the Omicron variant scare.

India and South Africa will lock horns in three Tests and three ODIs. The Boxing Day Test will begin on December 26 at the SuperSport Park, Centurion. CSA’s chief medical officer Dr Shuaib Manjra has said the path is open for Team India if they want to leave at any point if the visitors wish.

“If there needs to be repatriation and the borders are closed, the government has given a guarantee that they will allow the players and the team to go back to India,” South Africa outlet News 24 quoted CSA medical officer as saying.

“I think we’ve taken whatever measures we can to ensure that the Indian team is not only safe here, but should they need to leave for whatever reason, that the path is open for them to leave at any point that they wish,” Manjra added.

Earlier this month, CSA had reportedly offered COVID-19 vaccine booster shots for Team India players if they need them as per the report in South African outlet News 24.

CSA has also informed that owing to the increasing COVID-19 cases around the world, and the fourth wave locally, CSA along with the BCCI have taken a joint decision to protect the players and the tour by not making tickets available for India vs Proteas series.

CSA on Monday had confirmed that the Mzansi Super League (MSL) scheduled for February 2022 was called off. The decision has been taken owing to the COVID-19 environment which has made it difficult to maintain the brand proposition of being the premium international T20 tournament, due to increased travel restrictions as imposed by many nations on South Africa since the discovery of the Omicron variant of the virus.

Proteas bowler, Anrich Nortje, was ruled out of the three-match Test series against India, due to a persistent injury.