ICC World Test Championship: CA blames angry CSA for rejecting offer to play in Australia

The Australian team faced a major setback after their proposed tour to South Africa was ultimately postponed by Cricket Australia (CA) on Tuesday, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. After their embarrassing loss to Indian in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the Tim Paine-led side were hopeful of redeeming themselves with a spirited performance in South Africa. With this latest development, Australia's ICC World Championship aspirations could also come to an abrupt end, as they have a very bleak chance to make it to the final with their current points. 

ICC World Test Championship: CA claims South Africa was not interested to play in Australia 

The Australian cricket board's decision of postponing the three-match Test series against South Africa cost them a place in the ICC World Test Championship Final and has also angered Cricket South Africa (CSA) reportedly. With South Africa facing a second wave of the COVID-19 virus, the board was apprehensive of letting their players travel to the country for the matches. However, in an attempt to save the series, they offered to host the matches in Australia itself, but Cricket South Africa chose to decline the proposal. 

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Cricket Australia's interim CEO, Nick Hockley, addressed the same issue while speaking to reporters on Wednesday. He revealed that the board had made a formal offer to CSA of hosting the series in Australia, which was considered since the last few months to save CSA huge costs of organizing it in their home country. As a result, the CEO rejected claims that Australia cancelled the tour using the pandemic as an excuse, when it is being speculated by many pundits and cricketers that CA did not see much of financial sense in doing so at present. Hockley confirmed that the two nations will play the series in the future and they are keen on rescheduling the matches. 

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Pakistan vs South Africa 2021

South Africa are currently in Pakistan, where they are scheduled to play two Test matches and three T20Is. Having lost their first Test match, they will be keen to bounce back with a thumping win in the upcoming fixture. Moreover, the Pakistan vs South Africa 2021 series also could be a reason why CSA rejected Australia's proposal. Considering the bio-security protocols in different countries, along with the challenges of being in a bio-secure environment for an extended period, could take a toll on the players. 

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WTC standings: New Zealand qualify for the Final 

Australia currently occupy the third spot on the points table with 69.2 percentage points to their name. New Zealand now have become the first team to claim a spot in the Final, and they are placed at the second position with 70 percentage points. This makes the upcoming India vs England Test series even more important for both the participating nations.

India, who currently are at the top of the WTC standings 71.7 percentage points, will have to win the home series by at least a two-match margin to make it to the Final. England, who are fourth with 68 percentage points, also have an outside chance if they manage to win the Indian vs England Test series by 3-0, 4-0, or 3-1.

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Image source: cricket.com.au