Australia and South Africa face travel headache due to India’s Dubai base for Champions Trophy

Both countries remain unsure whether respective semi-finals will be held in UAE or Pakistan

Australia captain Steve Smith does not know if his side will be playing their Champions Trophy semi-final in Dubai or Lahore. AFP

Australia and South Africa might have already secured their Champions Trophy semi-final-spots yet neither nation know what country their respective games are going to be played in.

While Pakistan are the official hosts of the ICC tournament, Rohit Sharma's India side are playing their matches in Dubai after being advised by their government not to travel to their neighbouring country.

Both Australia and South Africa are guaranteed to progress from Group B, where they will play next depends on how India's match against New Zealand in Group A on Sunday finishes.

India know their semi-final will be in Dubai on Tuesday, with New Zealand playing in Lahore 24 hours later.

Australia and South Africa are almost certainly the top-two in Group B but do not know who their knockout opponents will be until after the India-New Zealand clash in the UAE.

Were they to wait for the outcome and fly on Monday, they would miss out on their only chance to train in Dubai if they were paired with India so it is understood both teams will travel to the UAE.

However, one of Australia and South Africa faces the certainty of having a three-hour flight back to Lahore, placing the integrity of the tournament once again under the microscope.

Former England captains Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain are among those who have accused India of having an unfair advantage for this tournament since announcing they would not play in Pakistan.

“They’re playing at just one venue,” said Atherton on the Sky Sports Podcast, while in conversation with Hussain last week. "They don’t have to travel either between venues or, you know, between countries, as a lot of other teams have to do.

“Therefore, the selection, you know, can focus in on the conditions in Dubai. And obviously, they’ll know where they’re playing their semi-final as and when they get through to that. That seems to me to be an undeniable advantage, but, you know, kind of hard to quantify how big an advantage."

Hussain added: “Other teams will have to pick playing XIs for different conditions in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi and then they have to travel and adjust to those conditions.

“So it is an advantage but what else could have happened? Once India refused to come to Pakistan, what could have happen? You can’t have a tournament like this without India-Pakistan. It had to be in Dubai."

However, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar came out on the attack saying the pair should be focusing on England's problems on the pitch and stop "moaning" about his country.

"I think these are all wise and experienced people. Why don't you actually look at why your team has not qualified? That's what I was going to ask you, sir," Gavaskar told India Today.

"Rather than constantly focusing on India, are you even looking at your own backyard? Your players are in such a fragile mental state-they don't seem to care about results as long as they meet certain expectations.

"They are always moaning. They just cannot seem to understand where India stands in international cricket-in terms of quality, income, talent, and, more importantly, in terms of generating revenue.

"India's contribution to global cricket-through television rights and media revenue-plays a massive role. They need to understand that their salaries also come from what India brings to the world of cricket."