Covid variant in South Africa: BCCI will not pull the Indian A team

The Indian young women’s hockey team, which includes a few U-18 players, was scheduled to head to the South Africa Women’s World Championships on Saturday until The International Hockey Federation decided to suspend the tournament on Friday night. The World Cup was scheduled to start at Potchefstream on December 5th.

India’s A-cricket team is currently touring the country and playing their first four-day game at Bloemfontein, while India’s senior team is set to fly to South Africa against its ongoing home series against New Zealand.

The BCCI has decided to wait and see, despite the advice of the Department of Health, for all states that identified the new variant B.1.1529 of the virus as having “serious public health effects.”

The Department of Health on Thursday ordered all states to subject international travelers from and through Botswana, South Africa and Hong Kong to rigorous screening and testing due to the numerous cases of the new variant of the virus reported in those countries.

BCCI has not yet canceled the ‘A’ team’s tour and it has been announced that no message has been sent to the team. “We need to get the details of Cricket South Africa before we decide on our future course of action. We are keeping an eye on developments,” a BCCI official told The Indian Express.

According to the cricket board, the senior team’s tour of South Africa for three tests, three ODIs and four T20Is, starting on December 17, is currently underway, although the situation is considered smooth. The Indian team had refused to play the fifth test against England in Manchester in September after the outbreak at the camp.

On Friday, when the first ODI between South Africa and the Netherlands had rained, Cricket South Africa issued a statement stating: “Cricket South Africa (CSA) and Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Bond (KNCB) are aware of the news reports that are making the rounds. Cancellation or transfer to Africa. “

It added: “Both boards can confirm that after the updated data, it is highly unlikely that the visiting team will be able to fly from South Africa over the weekend. KNCB will consider all options and prioritize the physical and mental well-being of its players. when all flight options are considered.

The Associated Press reported today that British and Irish golfers and rugby teams rushed home to return after the UK government announced a ban on flights from South Africa to prevent the spread of a new variant of Covid-19. The report quoted UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid as saying there were concerns that the new variant “may be more contagious” than the delta strain and that “the vaccines we currently have may be less effective” against it.

Irish golfer Paul Dunne told RTE Radio that he withdrew from the Joburg Open and planned to fly to Dubai on Friday. “I had three holes in the finish on my first round, and when I came in, I turned on my phone and got messages from everyone asking if I was going to the airport or if I would stay to play. That’s when I started researching it, ”Dunne told the radio program.

The United Rugby Championship has also been on hiatus. On Thursday, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the South African National Institute for Public Health, said a new variant of Covid-19 has been detected in South Africa and 22 positive cases have been recorded since genome sequencing. The British science journal Nature reported that a group of experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) had been set to brand the position as a “concern”.