CSA confirms Sri Lanka tour itinerary

ESPNCricinfo: Cricket South Africa (CSA) has confirmed the itinerary for Russell Domingo’s first assignment as head coach. South Africa will play five ODIs and three Twenty20s in Sri Lanka between 20 July and 6 August.

The tour was initially supposed to include three Tests but SLC asked for those to be postponed to accommodate the Sri Lankan Premier League. That means Domingo will not have to worry about the defence of the No.1 Test ranking until October, when South Africa are scheduled to play Pakistan in the UAE.

Full tour fixtures

20 July,     1st ODI, Colombo

23 July,     2nd ODI, Colombo

26 July,     3rd ODI, Kandy

28 July,     4th ODI, Kandy

31 July,     5th ODI, Colombo

2 August, 1st T20, Colombo

4 August, 2nd T20, Hambantota

6 August, 3rd T20, Hambantota

The limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka is likely to be an experimental one for South Africa. They would have just completed the Champions Trophy and may toy with combinations as they look to build towards the 2014 World T20 and 2015 World Cup.

Graeme Smith, who will miss the Champions Trophy with an ankle problem, is unlikely to make a comeback for this tour. His injury requires at least four months of recovery, and he may not play until the end of August. His wife, Morgan, is also due to give birth to the couple’s second child during the Sri Lanka tour.

With Jacques Kallis also out because he does not play bilateral one-day series, the squad that goes to the Champions Trophy will have an opportunity to gel in Sri Lanka. South Africa, are likely to have a new ODI vice-captain, after Hashim Amla relinquished the role, and it will present Faf du Plessis with a chance to develop as the T20 leader.

The series will be Sri Lanka’s third limited-overs assignment in two months, with the Champions Trophy and the tri-series in the West Indies preceding it.

The Sri Lanka Premier League will begin shortly after the end of the tour. South Africa and Sri Lanka last played against each other in January 2012. South Africa won a hard fought one-day series 3-2 at home, with Sri Lanka coming back to win the last two games.