India's tour of South Africa: Men in Blue opt training over tour game

Courtesy: Reuters

New Delhi: India's two-day tour game ahead of their three-match Test series in South Africa has been cancelled, Cricket South Africa (CSA) said on Monday.

The Indians have instead, as per CSA, opted for training sessions on those days.

"Please be advised that the two-day warm-up match for India at Eurolux Boland Park will no longer be taking place. India have opted for training sessions on those days," the CSA said in a release.

No official reason has been given for the cancellation of the warm-up game but the change in schedule would mean that India will head into the Test series -- starting January 5 next year in Cape Town -- without a practice match.

Meanwhile, in a first, young pacers Mohammed Siraj, Avesh Khan, Navdeep Saini and Basil Thampi will be travelling with the Indian team to South Africa as net bowlers, a top BCCI official told PTI.

The idea is to help the visiting batsmen prepare well for the South African fast bowlers.

The timings for the day-night ODI matches have been changed too. All the games have been advanced by half an hour.