South Africa squad clears COVID tests in Pakistan

The South African squad arrived in Pakistan without the services of their Indian performance analyst, Prasanna Agoram as he was not issued a visa for the tour by the Pakistan embassy in Pretoria.

The entire South Africa cricket team has cleared the COVID-19 tests, allowing the tourists to take part in their first outdoor practice session in Karachi on Sunday.

The South Africa squad, which includes 21 players, underwent their first COVID-19 tests soon after landing in Karachi on Saturday morning and according to their media manager, all the reports came negative.

The players and officials were then allowed to go to the Karachi Gymkhana ground adjacent to their hotel and have their first training session.

The players and officials will undergo another round of COVID-19 tests in two days’ time.

The South African squad arrived in Pakistan without the services of their Indian performance analyst, Prasanna Agoram as he was not issued a visa for the tour by the Pakistan embassy in Pretoria.

A source said Prasanna had been denied visa due to security reasons.

The source said that the Indian analyst of the team will now work from his home in Bengaluru and assist the visitors in the Test and T20 series.

Last year when Zimbabwe toured Pakistan, their head coach Lalchand Rajput didn't accompany the team as he withdrew from the tour on the advice of the Indian embassy in Harare.

The visitors reached Pakistan on a chartered flight for a month-long tour after all-commercial airlines from South Africa were stopped due to the pandemic.