Dubai: Australia and South Africa are arriving in Dubai ahead of the Champions Trophy semi-final scheduled for Tuesday. However, one of the teams will need to return to Pakistan for the second semi-final, which is set to take place on Wednesday.

These travel arrangements have been established to ensure that the Group B teams advancing to the knockout stages have at least one day to practice prior to their semi-final match. The identity of the team that will compete against India in Dubai will be determined following the final Group A match between India and New Zealand on Sunday.

The leaders of each group will face the second-placed team from the opposing group. The team that will play against India will do so in Dubai, as the Indian board did not obtain governmental approval to travel to Pakistan for the tournament.

The Australian squad is expected to arrive in Dubai on Saturday and will conduct their training on Sunday. South Africa will depart for Dubai after their Group B match against England in Karachi on Saturday and will train the following day at the ICC Academy, located just minutes from the Dubai International Stadium. It appears increasingly likely that Afghanistan will be returning home, as they were also scheduled for an early journey to Dubai.

In less than ideal circumstances, without these travel arrangements, one of the Group B teams would have faced challenges in securing practice time at the venue for their semi-final.

It remains unclear why both semi-finals were not postponed by a day, as this would have provided the teams with additional time to travel and train. One explanation offered by the organizers is that this schedule was designed to create a longer interval before Sunday’s final. During last year’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies, there was only a one-day gap between the second semi-final in Trinidad and the final in Barbados.

With India opting not to travel to Pakistan, the location for the final will only be confirmed after their semi-final match. Should India emerge victorious on Tuesday, the Champions Trophy will conclude in Dubai. Conversely, if they do not win, Pakistan will have the chance to host the final at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.

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