According to a report in an Australian publication, South Africa's upcoming tour of Australia in December and January will be cut short because the visitors have requested that the ODI matches be rescheduled because the organisers of the country's domestic T20 tournament have refused to allow players to remain in Australia following the conclusion of the Test series.
The debut of the new UAE T20 league, which will begin in January 2023, has further crammed the calendar into which the Big Bash League is aiming to rebuild itself with a higher-quality offering than seen in recent seasons, according to the source. As a result, Cricket Australia (CA) is having difficulty finding dates in an already packed season.
"With money moving out of India, including multiple owners of IPL clubs, there is a genuine threat of the BBL being overwhelmed by a tidal wave of cash for players to feature in shorter tournaments," The Age newspaper reported.
"In a reminder of the complexities at play whenever corporate ownership is introduced to any athletic ecosystem," the report claimed, "Cricket South Africa's leaders have notified Cricket Australia that the new competition implies the three ODIs scheduled for mid-January "won't be possible."
"While the timing of the ODI series against South Africa is set out in the future tours programme, we have recently received a request from Cricket South Africa to reconsider the dates of the three games, but we have been unable to find alternative dates" as yet," CA's chief executive Nick Hockley said when the schedule was announced.
If the ODI series is shifted or cancelled, it will help CA achieve similar goals for the BBL, particularly the availability of elite Australian players in the period between the conclusion of the Test series against South Africa and the commencement of a tour of India in February.
The two boards are reportedly trying to find another window in which to play the games, which are "pivotal as they are to automatic qualification for the 2023 World Cup," according to the source. The Proteas, who are currently placed 11th, must finish in the top eight to qualify. Australia is in sixth place.