The South African Cricket Team’s tour to India in November this year will mark history and celebrate the 34th anniversary of South Africa’s readmission to international cricket.

The Proteas are set to play all three formats in India in November and December after the BCCI confirmed the fixtures for the tour. The tour will begin with a two-match Test series from 14 November, while three ODI games will be followed by five T20Is.

The first Test will be played in Delhi, with the final game in the longest format set to take place in Guwahati from 22 November.

India and the Proteas will then play three ODIs in Ranchi (30 November), Raipur (3 December) and Visakhapatnam (6 December).

The tour will then conclude with five T20Is in Cuttack (9 December), Mullanpur (11 December), Dharamsala (14 December), Lucknow (17 December) and Ahmedabad (19 December).

The ODIs are all day-night fixtures, while the T20Is are night matches.

The upcoming tour to India coincides with the 34th anniversary of South Africa’s readmission to the international stage, where in 1991, India became the first country to host a South African cricket team after South Africa was banned from international cricket.

SA was banned in 1970 by the International Cricket Council (ICC), after a resolution taken against the then apartheid government. The Proteas played their first ODI against India at Eden Gardens, Calcutta, on November 10.

South Africa’s High Commissioner to India, Professor Anil Sooklal, spoke about the significance of the upcoming tour.

“India was at the forefront in isolating South Africa internationally. As early as 1946, India applied economic sanctions against South Africa, and it was the first country to take South Africa to the United Nations, bringing international focus (to apartheid).

“Following the economic sanctions, they then imposed comprehensive sanctions against South Africa, including all sporting and cultural ties.”

Sooklal explained that this led to an international focus, where it was decided that sport itself could not be conducted normally within the international community, whereby one team was under one apartheid rule.

“Therefore, in 1970, the ICC decided to leave South Africa, and of course, when Nelson Mandela was released from prison, and we started working towards the road to democracy, we were readmitted to the ICC, and the first international game, which South Africa embarked on, was against India. It was India that led the charge that sport cannot be normalised under apartheid.

“It was naturally then that this first partnership happened between our two teams here in Eden Gardens, Calcutta, where it was a resounding success.”

Sooklal added that when considering the forthcoming tour, it is notable to recall the journey our sports team have travelled, and how “sport has played such a critical role in the national building”.

In an interview with Business Report last month, Cricket South Africa (CSA) said the sport of cricket plays a huge role in contributing to the South African GDP, tourism, and economy.

CSA said that India’s tour to South Africa in the 2024/2025 season created a big economic boost. Wanele Mngomezulu, Chief Marketing Officer (CSA), said that cricket makes a huge contribution in drawing international fans to South Africa, contributing to sports tourism.

“According to BDO, the direct, indirect, and induced economic impact was approximately R218 million for the recent SA vs India inbound tour. The total contribution to the national government via various taxes amounted to R14 million.”

Not only is the Indian Premier League (IPL) full of South Africans, but CSA also established the Betway SA20 in 2022, where all six of the teams were bought by franchises from the IPL.

“I think our cricket is still growing as the IPL, is a multi-billion dollar industry in India, and in South Africa, the T20 has gained popularity, and it will still grow, so I think that’s an important dimension of our sporting contract between the two countries,” Sooklal said.

“In fact, in India, there is a lot of excitement about South Africa hosting the 2027 Cricket World Cup, and this is, I think, what underpins the solidarity that we have between our two countries, not only on a government level but also on the role of sporting level, especially on the cricket front.”

theolin.tembo@inl.co.za

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