It is the best of times; it is the worst of times for young Siliguri cricketer Richa Ghosh. The 17-year-old wicket-keeper-batswoman, who was named in the Indian women squad for the upcoming tour in Australia yesterday may have
to wait indefinitely, along with the rest of her teammates, for the series to start as the team’s schedule for the upcoming tour of Australia could be altered due to the border restrictions and Covid-19 lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne, according to a Cricket Australia release today.

India and Australia were set to cross swords across all three formats from next month. The schedule comprised three One-Day Internationals, as many  Twenty20 Internationals, and a historic day-night Test match at the Western Australia Cricket Association Ground in Perth.

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However, according to reports today, the ongoing Covid-19 lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne as well as state border closures have made that unlikely. Cricket Australia is currently speaking with government authorities about how, where and when the seven games can be played.

An announcement is expected shortly regarding changes to the seven-match schedule, reports from Australia said. When informed about these reports this afternoon, Richa’s father, Manabendra Ghosh, looked morose and he hoped
that the pandemic situation would improve soon in Australia and her daughter would be able to play in the series.

“We were very excited yesterday as it is a dream come true. We definitely want her to showcase her talent at the series as soon as possible and put up a brilliant performance in all three formats,” he said.

Richa had last year featured in the tri-nation series between Australian women, England women and the India women cricket team. On February 12 last year, she made her WT20I debut for India, against Australia, in the final of the tri-series.

“But this series will give her an entirely different kind of exposure. The day-night match as well as the opportunity to perform Down Under will definitely have given her tremendous confidence and immense experience. She is ready and is raring to go at the moment. But we shall also have to keep in mind the challenges that have been created by the deadly coronavirus across Australia recently. We are keeping our fingers crossed,” Mr Ghosh sighed.