BCCI is looking to gain an advantage for their Test team for their upcoming tour to Australia later this year for the four-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

While Cricket Australia (CA) is trying its best to have the big-ticket Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, despite rising COVID-19 cases in Victoria State; the Indian board is looking to help its Test specialists by sending them down under early for some much-needed practice.

This is due to the non-possibility of any camp being organized in Dubai or Ahmedabad before the series given the Coronavirus situation, the BCCI is working with the CA to ensure that the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari amongst others get extra practice in Australia by sending them in October.

"If we send them early, they would get adequate time to prepare. Players from teams that don't make it to IPL Qualifiers, will fly directly to Australia as soon as the league stage gets over. Coming home will make things more complicated," a BCCI official told Indian Express.

SCG prepared to host Australia-India Boxing Day Test in case required

CA has already prepared an itinerary featuring three T20Is in October, which are likely to be postponed due to IPL., followed by Tests and ODIs in December-January, but is now prepared to wait till October before arriving at a final decision. 

CA's interim CEO Nick Hockley said on Saturday they are doing everything they can to keep the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, which is under Stage 4 lockdown. CA wants the India tour to go ahead, as they are facing a severe financial crunch. Their officials are in touch with BCCI to make the series as safe as possible.

If the situation doesn’t change in Melbourne by the time India arrives for the Test series, apart from Adelaide which is considered a safe venue thanks to accommodation in the stadium premises, Perth and Sydney are being explored as other venues.

Unlike Victoria and New South Wales, the number of COVID-19 cases in South Australia and Western Australia is still only in three figures.