Fulfilling the quota requirements while fielding a competitive team has long been a sensitive issue but after a poor 2019, returning to winning ways looks to be the immediate priority of the four selectors, two of whom are black.
Former skipper Ian Chappell backed premier fast bowler Pat Cummins over batting maestro Steve Smith for the Australian captaincy after incumbent Tim Paine retires.
Smith was stripped of the Australian captaincy on Sunday and suspended for one Test by the International Cricket Council after admitting a team plot to tamper with the ball in the on-going third Test against South Africa at Newlands.
Australia skipper Tim Paine has thrown his support behind Steve Smith replacing him as captain of the Test team when the time comes for a leadership change.
Images from Day 4 of the third Test between South Africa and India, in Cape Town, on Friday.
South Africa head coach Mark Boucher has ranked the remarkable, come-from-behind 2-1 series triumph over world No. 1 India as one of the best in the Rainbow Nation's Test cricket history.
Captain Quinton de Kock smashed a sparkling century as South Africa eased to a seven-wicket victory over World champions England in the opening One-Day International, at Newlands, on Tuesday.
The issue has marred South Africa's return to international cricket for the first time since March and created debate over whether the squad should be seen to be more publicly supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement.
The ignored trio of KL Rahul, Ajinkya Rahane and Ishant Sharma were part of an optional practice session at Newlands, even as South Africa coach Ottis Gibson warned they would continue to torment India with pace.
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 2nd Test played at Newlands in Cape Town on Monday
Peter Handscomb leapt to the defence of Tim Paine
Jos Buttler was heard swearing at Vernon Philander through the stump microphone on day five as the South African batted to save the Test for the home side
South Africa's Anrich Nortje took the vital wickets of captain Joe Root and talisman Ben Stokes as England struggled to 262 for nine at stumps on the first day of the second Test on Friday. Pace bowler Nortje, playing his fourth Test, finished with 2-54 off 17 overs as the home side restricted the tourists on a Newlands wicket that was expected to be full of runs. Images from the opening day of the second Test at Newlands on Friday.
"It's got nothing to do with the cricket - it's in the past."
South Africa coach Mark Boucher says his side is using those to work on a new approach he hopes will reverse a slide in fortunes across all three formats for the side.
'The last few days we've really been able to galvanise around him, to have some really robust discussions on where we want to take this cricket team, what we expect of him and what he expects of us.'
The Indian team may not encounter the kind of bounce they are expecting from the Newlands track during the first Test against South Africa on January 5 as the worst drought in many years has made it difficult for the groundsmen to prepare a pitch that suits the home team.
South Africa pacer Vernon Philander, on Wednesday, questioned India's claims of being fully prepared for the three-match series, saying a fair assessment of where the visitors stand could only be made after the first Test beginning Friday.
Check out the lowest totals in Ashes history after England bowled Australia out for 60 in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge on Thursday.
Since the Newlands ball-tampering scandal, Australia's on-field histrionics had been toned down under the leadership of the wicketkeeper-captain.
Botham is the latest among the illustrious bandwagon of cricketers led by current India captain Virat Kohli, the iconic Sachin Tendulkar and Australian master batsman Ricky Ponting who have spoken against the proposed change for the 2023-2031 cycle.
A CA director for 13 years, Eddings replaced David Peever in 2018 as interim chairman after the former mining executive resigned following the release of a scathing cultural review into the Newlands ball-tampering scandal.
Images from the Day 2 of the second Test at Newlands on Saturday.
India's tour of South Africa later this year will commence with the visitors playing Twenty20 and 50-over internationals against the hosts before taking them on in a three-Test series.
India's swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar on Tuesday jumped eight places to a career-best 22 following his impressive show in a lost cause in the first Test against South Africa but Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara slipped in the ICC ranking ladder.
'It's something I do in games to visualise where we are bowling, how the batter is playing our bowlers and then out of habit I always mark centre.'
The Indian team's strategy is expected to undergo paradigm shift with some players getting a subtle yet stern message to lift their games as they face an embarrassing possibility of a clean sweep against South Africa in the third ODI, in Cape Town on Sunday.
The Western Australian, who was playing his eighth Test when he took the piece of sandpaper onto the field at Newlands, said he is determined to trust his own values in the future.
'I've played with Bumrah in the IPL and we're good friends. You're not going to back down when you're playing for your country and sometimes on the field things get heated.'
Captain Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla led South Africa to a remarkable comeback, eight-wicket victory over Australia in the first Test at Newlands on Friday. Chasing 236 for victory, after a bizarre second day in which 23 wickets fell and parts of all four innings took place, Smith (101 not out) and Amla (112) put on 195 for the second wicket to stun Australia.
IMAGES from Day 5 of the 2nd Test played at Newlands in Cape Town on Tuesday.
Australia's David Warner was taken to hospital for scans on a groin strain on Sunday, prompting a nervous wait for the hosts ahead of the start of the Test series against India in Adelaide on December 17.
Jonny Bairstow bludgeoned a brilliant unbeaten 86 from 48 balls as the tourists chased down 180 to beat South Africa by five wickets
Australia's ill-tempered tour of South Africa exploded in a ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town two years ago, leading to a review of the team culture among other measures.
Anderson sustained a rib injury in England's 189-run win in the second Test at Newlands and underwent an MRI scan in Cape Town.
South Africa made an early breakthrough with the wicket of West Indian Leon Johnson when play got underway on a rain-delayed fourth day of the third and final Test at Newlands on Monday.
The IPL, which was perhaps the biggest gamble of his life, turned out to be the biggest success story ever, making Lalit Modi a cult in the echelons of global sport.
Smith has been the South Asians' nemesis since first setting eyes on them in Test whites seven years ago.
Indian captain Virat Kohli and his South African counterpart Faf du Plessis made the donation of 100,000 Rand to the Gift of the Givers Foundation at the third T20 International cricket match at the Newlands Stadium on Sunday.
Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc has been ruled out of the fourth Test against South Africa and the upcoming Indian Premier League due to a stress fracture in his leg.
