By Patrick Compton.
The first T20I between South Africa and India was abandoned following persistent rain at Kingsmead in Durban on Sunday. The game, scheduled to start at 4pm, was called off shortly before 6pm with the rain preventing a toss.
The match was the first of three T20Is in this multi-format tour, involving three T20Is and three ODIs before two test matches concludes the visit.
The next T20I is at Gqeberha on Tuesday with the series wrapping up at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Thursday.
The Kingsmead T20 was sold out more than a month ago in anticipation of the world’s richest and most marketable side being in town.
The washed-out T20 means that’s it for Durban and internationals for 2023 as the Women’s ODI series between South Africa and Bangladesh taking place in East London (16 December), Potchefstroom (20 December) and Benoni (23 December).
The men’s T20 series, from Gqeberha on Tuesday, will move to Johannesburg on Thursday, from where it morphs into the ODI series that starts with the Pink Day ODI at the Wanderers (17 December), followed by the second ODI in Gqeberha (19 December) and the third ODI in Paarl (21 December).
The tour will be sealed by the traditional Tests at SuperSport Park (26-30 December) and Newlands (3-7 January).