NewKerala.com

Key Points

South Africa's home T20I series against West Indies has been shortened from five to three matches. The change comes because the original schedule conflicted with the T20 World Cup support period starting January 31. Instead of five matches spread across multiple venues, only three games will be played in Paarl, Centurion, and Johannesburg. The final match will serve as the annual Pink Day fixture to raise breast cancer awareness.

Key Points: South Africa West Indies T20Is Cut to Three Due to World Cup

  • Series reduced from five to three T20Is due to T20 World Cup clash
  • Matches now scheduled for January 27, 29, and 31 at three venues
  • Newlands and Buffalo Park removed as host venues for the series
  • Final T20I will be Pink Day fixture supporting breast cancer awareness
2 min read

SA to play three T20Is instead of five against West Indies due to clash with T20 WC

South Africa's home T20I series against West Indies reduced from five to three matches due to scheduling conflict with T20 World Cup, affecting venues and dates.

"Two fixtures have been removed from the list - ESPNCricinfo"

Johannesburg, September 30

South Africa's home T20I series against West Indies during the home international summer has been reduced to three T20Is from five due to clash with the T20 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka.

As per ESPNCricinfo, the matches, originally scheduled from January 27 to February 6, will now end by January 31 when the T20 WC support period starts. Two fixtures have been removed from the list.

Newlands in Cape Town and Buffalo Park in East London would not host the matches, with three matches to be played at Boland Park in Paarl, SuperSport Park in Centurion and the Wanderers in Johannesburg on January 27, 29 and 31 respectively. No ODI cricket will take place, and hence the final T20I will be the "Pink Day" fixture, an annual occasion in which the South African men's team dons pink colour to raise funds and awareness against breast cancer.

Proteas have also added three under-19 ODIs against India to their calendar for summer, to be played from January 3 to 7 in Benoni as a preparation for the under-19 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Zimbabwe and Namibia from mid-January. Fixtures for the tournament are yet to be announced.

The current ICC World Test champions are having a curtailed home season, playing abroad till December 19. Their World Test Championship (WTC) mace defence will start in Pakistan next month, where they will play an all-format series with three ODIs and T20Is each. This will be followed by an all-format flight to India, with matches being two Tests, three ODIs and five T20Is.

The other reason for lack of home matches is because the venues around South Africa are being prepared for the 2027 ODI World Cup, to be jointly-hosted with Zimbabwe and Namibia. Drop-in surfaces are being developed country-wide for the same. The home season will be headlined by the fourth season of SA20, starting from December.

- ANI

Share this article:

Reader Comments

P
Priya S
Good decision actually! Players need proper rest before major tournaments. The T20 World Cup in India & Sri Lanka is more important. Quality over quantity! 👍
A
Arjun K
Excited for the T20 World Cup co-hosted by India! Hope our boys get good practice before the tournament. The reduced series makes sense from scheduling perspective.
S
Sarah B
The Pink Day initiative is wonderful! Great to see cricket supporting important causes like breast cancer awareness. Hope they raise good funds despite shorter series.
V
Vikram M
Smart scheduling by CSA. Better to have 3 competitive matches than 5 tired performances. Looking forward to the India-SA series too! 🏏
M
Michael C
While I understand the scheduling constraints, it's a bit disappointing for local fans who miss out on matches. Hope the SA20 league makes up for it!
A
Ananya R
Good to see focus on under-19 development too! The India-SA U19 series will be crucial preparation. Future stars in the making! 🌟

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

Leave a Comment

Minimum 50 characters 0/50