Kohli 'confident' to have clarity on South Africa tour in day or two amid Omicron scare
Dec 02, 2021
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 2 : India skipper Virat Kohli on Thursday said everyone is working hard to find clarity on the South Africa tour but the team's focus remains on the second Test against New Zealand which gets underway from Friday.
India is slated to tour South Africa next month for three Tests, three ODIs, and four T20Is. The tour is scheduled to begin on December 17.
But due to the threat of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, the tour of South Africa has come under the clouds.
"It's pretty natural, we are not playing in normal times so there is a lot of planning that is involved, there is a lot of preparation that is involved in understanding what exactly will go on," said Kohli in the pre-match press conference.
"There are players who are not part of the group right now and will be entering quarantine to join the team in the bubble to fly in a charter. Those kinds of things, you want to seek clarity as soon as possible, so we have spoken to all the senior members of the squad."
"Rahul bhai has initiated a conversation within the group which is very important to know because at the end of the day we understand our focus on the Test match will not shift regardless but also to know you want to have clarity in a situation to know what exactly is going on," he added.
The Indian skipper is confident that everyone will get to know the exact situation pretty soon as everyone is working hard to find clarity ahead of the South Africa tour.
"We have been talking to the board and we are pretty confident within a day or two or pretty soon we will have absolute clarity as to what is going on," said Kohli.
"We need to be realistic about things as well and should ignore the things which potentially can put you into a confusing place. Everyone is working hard towards finding clarity. We are all hopeful that will happen soon but prime focus in on second Test," he added.
The World Health Organization (WHO) named the new COVID-19 variant B.1.1.529, which has been detected in South Africa, as 'Omicron'. This came after the WHO held a meeting to discuss the newly-identified COVID-19 variant.
Meanwhile, India A players are currently in Bloemfontein for the ongoing series against South Africa A.
