Cricket West Indies ready to play India series at lesser venues

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officials are mulling over reducing the number of venues for limited-overs series against West Indies due to COVID-19. The upcoming series, starting from February 6, was originally planned to be staged at six venues. Motera was set to host the first ODI match, followed by games being played in Jaipur, Kolkata, Cuttack, Visakhapatnam, and Thiruvananthapuram. However, the rising number of COVID-19 has left BCCI concerned. They are now planning to reduce the number of venues to one or two to limit the travel.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) is also open to playing the matches in fewer venues due to the current COVID-19 situation in India. CWI chief Ricky Skerritt interacted with the media and said while he has not received any official confirmation from the BCCI, CWI is open to operational changes given the COVID-19 situation in the country. "A request for such a change has not reached to me as yet. But we accept such operational actions by local boards in the interest of what is best for implementing health protocols," CWI chief Ricky Skerritt told Cricbuzz recently.

As per reports, the West Indies team will arrive in Ahmedabad on February 1 and will undergo quarantine for three days. Both teams will have net sessions on February 4 and 5 before the first match on February 6.  Meanwhile, the COVID-19 situation is getting concerning in India. The country is reporting over 1 lakh cases on a daily basis.