South Africa faces ban from International Cricket as government takes over country’s Cricket operations

In a shocking series of events, the South African government has decided to suspend Cricket South Africa and take control of all Cricket operations within the nation. The move might go against the ruling of the ICC that no government can intervene and take over the responsibility for the Cricketing activities of a country, failing […]
 
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South Africa faces ban from International Cricket as government takes over country’s Cricket operations

In a shocking series of events, the South African government has decided to suspend Cricket South Africa and take control of all Cricket operations within the nation.

The move might go against the ruling of the ICC that no government can intervene and take over the responsibility for the Cricketing activities of a country, failing which the country will be banned from international Cricket. South Africa’s neighbouring country Zimbabwe was banned due to the same reason for a brief period of time a few years ago.

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According to Cricbuzz, there were letters from the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) that demanded that “the CSA board and those senior executives who serve ex-officio on the board (the company secretary, the acting CEO, the CFO and the COO) are directed to step aside from the administration of CSA on full pay” pending the outcome of a month-long investigation by a task team into what SASCOC termed “many instances of maladministration and malpractice that have occurred since at least December 2019”.

The letter read, “This has manifestly caused great concern and consternation amongst your own members, former and current members of the national team of the Proteas, stakeholders, sponsors, and members of the cricket-loving public. There can be no doubt that this has caused cricket to lose the trust and confidence of members of the public, stakeholders, sponsors and the players represented by SACA (the South African Cricketers’ Association). All this has brought cricket into disrepute.”

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SASCOC took a dim view of CSA’s dallying about a forensic report into the organisation’s state of affairs, “SASCOC has attempted to address these issues in two meetings with the CSA board: one was exploratory, and the other failed to take place mainly because of the fact that CSA failed to make the… forensic report available to the SASCOC board despite promises and undertakings by CSA to do so.

South Africa faces ban from International Cricket as government takes over country’s Cricket operations

“CSA is in receipt of our letter which records that the board’s decision to make the said report available only on a limited basis to the president and board members of SASCOC, is wholly unreasonable and irrational given the apparent nature and scope of the report.”

SASCOC governs the relationship between the state and sports federations, and as such has the authority to put CSA under administration. Their decision, taken at a meeting on Tuesday, was passed by a unanimous vote. The CSA and the ICC are yet to comment on the matter.