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Presence of India A team augers well for November tour: Lorgat

New CSA chief executive officer Haroon Lorgat feels the presence of India A team in South Africa for a one-day Tri-series and two-Tests auger well for the upcoming tour of the senior Indian team in November.

Johannesburg: New CSA chief executive officer Haroon Lorgat feels the presence of India A team in South Africa for a one-day Tri-series and two-Tests auger well for the upcoming tour of the senior Indian team in November.
The Indian tour was believed to be under threat because of objections from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to Lorgat`s appointment last month. But Lorgat remained optimistic that the tour would go ahead, although he conceded that there may be some changes to the schedule which CSA had earlier announced unilaterally. "I don`t believe so," Lorgat told `The Star` when asked whether he believed the tour was in danger. "The A team just came in (on Monday) and I welcomed them at the High Performance Centre (in Pretoria). If you look at that A team, there are a number of players in that line-up that will be here at the end of the year. "So it may be an opportunity for them to get used to the conditions. I think they were smart to get those guys (Cheteshwar Pujara, Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma) into the A team with a view to getting them familiar with the pitches," Lorgat added. However, Lorgat was not sure whether the itinerary of three Tests, seven ODI`s and two T20 Internationals would remain the same. "From my understanding (the schedule) was confirmed, but there is obviously a bit of doubt in that now," Lorgat said, adding that he was hopeful it would stay as scheduled. Lorgat said he still did not understand why India was unhappy with his appointment. "I don`t know what the specific issues are and I wonder if I`ve not gotten trapped into a kind of media amplification of what may not be there," Lorgat concluded. PTI