The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah said that India will go ahead with their tour of South Africa for three Tests and three ODIS.

The four T20Is which were originally a part of the tour will now be played at a later date.

“BCCI has confirmed CSA that the Indian team will travel for three Tests and three ODIs. The remaining four T20Is will be played at a later date,” Shah told ANI.

The tour of South Africa was a topic of discussion amid the emergence of the new COVID-19 variant Omicron. Earlier, in another report, a senior BCCI official said that the Indian cricket board is convinced that the bio-bubble being created by the Cricket South Africa (CSA) will be safe and secure.

If there aren’t any more changes in the itinerary, the series starts on December 17 in Johannesburg.

The players will remain in a water-tight environment during the near seven-week tour.

As per news agency PTI, it is understood that the stamp of approval will be given by the general body during Saturday’s BCCI AGM as India’s FTP tour is one of the topics on the agenda.

The Indian team may also leave a little late after they complete their home series against New Zealand. Initially, they were scheduled to depart immediately.

The matches are likely to be held behind closed doors but for Cricket South Africa, their financial health depends on the India team’s visit as multi-million dollar TV rights are at stake.

For BCCI, one of the biggest positives has been India A team’s ongoing tour of South Africa, where they are engaged in three-match Test series.

“The information we received is that the bio-bubble created by CSA is safe and secured. Also, there hasn’t been a lot of data available as of now as to how severe and detrimental it could be. Also, we have not received any communication from the government on not going ahead with the tour.

“The team will enter the bubble shortly and travel by a charter flight. Even if there is a delay, it will be bubble to bubble transfer and hence no hard quarantine will be required,” the source said.