India to host Australia, South Africa in September-October

India will have a short home season this year. It will be hosting Australia and South Africa in September-October. Here is the tentative schedule.

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Team India has a busy international calendar this year. The international calendar is already a topic of debate of late, with players and legends objecting to non-stop cricket, which is taking a toll on players' mental health. It has prompted English all-rounder Ben Stokes to announce his premature retirement from One-Day Internationals (ODIs) at the tender age of 31. Nonetheless, it would be some time before the matter is discussed at the International Cricket Council (ICC). As for this year, Team India's home season will see a couple of tours from Australia and South Africa.

According to a report by Cricbuzz, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) met on Thursday, where it finalised the itinerary for the two said series above. Australia will be touring India for a short three-match Twenty20 International (T20I) series in September, after India's outing during the Asia Cup T20 2022, which will likely be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).

SLC deemed it impossible to host Asia Cup in its country, which is under severe economic and political crisis. Meanwhile, Australia's tour of India for T20Is will be a short warm-up before the ICC T20 World Cup from October 16 in Australia, where the hosts will be defending their maiden title.

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The India-Australia T20Is will run from September 20-25, followed by a tour by South Africa from September 28, which would include three T20Is and ODIs each, with the trip ending on October 11. The remaining dates of the home season, which continues into early next year, will be announced in due course, with Australia touring again in February for a four-Test series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, currently held by the hosts.

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Schedule
IND vs AUS
September 20 - 1st T20I (Mohali)
September 23 - 2nd T20I (Nagpur)
September 25 - 3rd T20I (Hyderabad)

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IND vs SA
September 28 - 1st T20I (Thiruvananthapuram)
October 1 - 2nd T20I (Guwahati)
October 3 - 3rd T20I (Indore)
October 6 - 1st ODI (Ranchi)
October 9 - 2nd ODI (Lucknow)
October 11 - 3rd ODI (Delhi)