Sri Lanka will tour South Africa for two Tests beginning December 26 in Centurion.© AFP
Cricket South Africa (CSA) and Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Thursday confirmed that the two-match Test series slated to commence from December 26 will go ahead as planned. The initial Test will be played from December 26 in Centurion whilst the second match is scheduled to commence on January 3 in Johannesburg. Earlier this week, the 3-match ODI series in between England and South Africa was postponed soon after some good COVID-19 situations have been reported. According to a statement from CSA, an assessment was performed by the SLC Medical Unit headed by Arjuna De Silva, who advised SLC to proceed with the series.
“Cricket South Africa appreciates the ongoing support from Sri Lanka Cricket under the leadership of Ashley de Silva, who has never wavered in its willingness to engage us in important and open discussions around our plans and the state of our readiness for the tour,” stated CSA acting CEO Kugandrie Govender in an official statement
“We are thankful that these discussions have allayed any trepidation around CSA’s ability to successfully host home tours in these unpredicted times,” he added.
The Sri Lanka men’s group will leave for South Africa as scheduled but head coach Mickey Arthur, accompanied by a overall health specialist, will travel with instant impact to South Africa to additional assess the circumstance and make required arrangements for the team’s arrival.
After the conclusion of the South Africa tour, Sri Lanka will host England in a two-match Test series slated to commence from January 14.
The England series against Sri Lanka was postponed in March this year due to the coronavirus pandemic and the rearranged tour will now be held behind closed doors in Galle.
The initial Test will get underway on January 14 whilst the second Test will be played from January 22 to 26.