Rawalpindi [Pakistan], February 4 (ANI): South Africa head coach Mark Boucher has said that it was disappointing to see Australia postponed the three-match Test series against the Proteas as all demands of Cricket Australia (CA) were being adhered to.
Australia’s three-match Test tour of South Africa was postponed on Tuesday due to an ‘unacceptable’ coronavirus risk. The Australian board had said that traveling from Australia to South Africa at this current time would have had an unacceptable level of health and safety risk to the visiting players.
“CSA have expressed their disappointment and it’s no different for the players. I know there was a lot of planning going into the Australian tour back home. We haven’t really been a part of that, but it seems a lot of goalposts were being moved for that particular tour, for Australia. For example, the one positive that came out of the bubble against Sri Lanka was the hotel that we stayed at (Irene County Club). We thought it was a great hotel for us as South Africans. It suits our needs and the cultural way that we are, being outdoors,” ESPNCricinfo quoted Boucher as saying.
“And we even surrendered that to Australia. There’s probably a feeling that we were laying down the red carpet for Australia, which is frustrating at times. After all of that, it’s very disappointing and disruptive to our plans going forward,” he added.
As the series between Australia and South Africa got postponed, the ICC on Tuesday confirmed that New Zealand has now become the first team to qualify for the finals of the World Test Championship (WTC). India, Australia, and England are the other three teams that will be fighting it out to battle against the Kiwis in the summit clash.
On Tuesday, Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) Director of Cricket Graeme Smith had said that the board is “extremely disappointed” with Australia’s decision to postpone the upcoming Test series with the Proteas due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Former Proteas skipper Smith said the CSA was working tirelessly in recent weeks to ensure that they meet every single expectation of the CA.
“We are extremely disappointed by the decision of CA. CSA has been working tirelessly in recent weeks to ensure that we meet every single expectation of CA,” said Smith in CSA release.
“This was set to be the longest tour in a BSE comprising a three-match Test series that was scheduled to begin with Australia’s arrival later in the month. So to be informed about the CA decision at the eleventh hour is frustrating,” he added. (ANI)
