The dates for the Proteas women’s inbound tour against Sri Lanka in February 2019 have been confirmed.

The tour, which will be played at four venues, will start with a three-T20 International series, followed by a three-ODI series.

Following the team’s disappointing results at the recently-concluded Women’s World T20 in the Caribbean, where they were knocked out in the group stage, CSA is committed to organising more series in the shortest format with an eye on the renamed ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 in Australia.

The T20s will be televised as double-header fixtures alongside the men’s T20I series, while the ODI competition will give the team another opportunity to add six much-needed points towards their 2021 ICC Women’s World Cup direct qualification pursuit.

The sides met recently in South Africa’s opening match of the Women’s World T20, where they convincingly beat Sri Lanka by seven wickets. Before that, it was another successful outing for the Proteas, who claimed a two-one ODI series victory over their hosts in Colombo.

‘This is a very important tour on two fronts,’ said Cricket South Africa chief executive officer Thabang Moroe.

‘The ODI series gives us another opportunity to clinch direct qualification for the ICC Women’s World Cup in 2021 via a top four finish in the ICC Women’s Championship, following our shared series in our most recent [outing] against the Windies.

‘The T20 series forms a critical component in giving our women’s team their rightful place on the global map, as they will share a live TV platform with our Proteas men’s team and play at some of our premier international grounds.

‘Meaningful gender equality is a very important part of CSA’s vision in making the game accessible to all, and enabling all our players to live their dreams.’

Photo: Gallo