Cricket South Africa, cricket’s governing body in the African country, was suspended by the Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee, a government body that overlooks the broader sports in the country, for a period of one month while it launches an investigation into its conduct, officials told Reuters on Thursday.
SASCOC acting chief executive Ravi Govender told Reuters that the radical step is “to remove the negativity and governance issues around CSA so that in future they can be more effective and efficient in their mandate”.
This essentially means that Cricket South Africa will have to cease daily operations. The decision will also throw into doubt the future of the team in international cricket.
The South African board has come under heavy criticism from sponsors over governance issues, while last week 30 leading players from the men’s and women’s national teams signed a scathing letter criticising the board for postponing the Annual General Meeting that had been scheduled for Sept. 5.
CSA, on its part, issued a statement saying that it does not agree with the resolution taken by SASCOC and has not had the opportunity to engage with SASCOC on various issues raised in the communication.
The statement further added: “In addition, CSA is taking legal advice regarding the basis on which SASCOC has sought to intervene in the business affairs of CSA. CSA does, however, commit to engaging further with SASCOC to understand its position and to find common ground with it in the best interests of cricket.”
International Cricket Council rules forbid government interference and this could mean that the national team’s participation in international tournaments could be jeopardized.
