JOHANNESBURG – The SA Women’s cricket squad will return to training on Monday, in preparation for the proposed tour of England in September.
A national high-performance squad, consisting of 24 players, will assemble in Pretoria on Sunday for a week-long skills-based training camp at the High Performance Centre (HPC). The camp will include pre-season medical assessments.
The players will then return to their respective provinces for individual training from August 3 to 14, before regrouping for a two-week camp from August 16 to 27. This will be the first time the players have trained together since March.
During the camps, the squad will train and live on-site at the HPC in a bio-secure environment.
The venue will adhere to strict safety protocols in accordance with guidelines set out by Cricket South Africa’s Covid-19 steering committee and approved by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), an arm of the National Department of Health.
Players and coaches will observe social distancing measures throughout in line with government regulations.
This week players and support staff are undergoing Covid-19 testing and will be required to test again before entering the second camp.
Cricket SA director of cricket Graeme Smith said: “We were very encouraged by the success of the health protocols in the lead-up to the 3TC Solidarity Cup and on the actual match day as well. Safety remains our priority at all times for players, support staff and all other people involved.
“The projected tour of England will have a heavy emphasis on the 50-over format as we start preparing for the ICC Women’s World Cup which is still scheduled to be played in New Zealand early next year.
“We have been through a frustrating period with our Momentum Proteas not able to build on the excellent form they showed at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup and next week’s camp represents an important new starting point.”
African News Agency (ANA)