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The interim board, chaired by the sharp and fearless ex-Constitutional Court judge Zak Yacoob is showing its muscles, backed by a mandate from the country’s highest sports office. (Photo: Gallo Images / The Times / Moeletsi Mabe)
Cricket South Africa is confident that the tour from Sri Lanka to South Africa will take place following the reservations of the England team about their handling of Covid-19.
Cricket South Africa Acting Chairman of the Board of Directors Judge Zak Yacoob believes Sri Lanka’s tour of South Africa will continue after issues over Covid-19 protocols derailed the recent England tour.
The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) board was set to cancel the two-trial tour based on media reports on England’s bookings about CSA’s ability to offer a biosecure environment.
But subsequent talks and endorsement by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have changed the SLC’s stance and there are signs the tour will go ahead.
The structure of international cricket dictates that the home union earns the broadcast fees for the bilateral series, which is why the SLC has been concerned.
Sri Lanka hosts England in January 2021, which is a great source of income for the SLC. You cannot afford to have a situation where several of your players are blocked in South Africa due to positive Covid-19 tests. Due to the tight switch between tours, it could jeopardize Sri Lanka’s home series against England on that stage.
“I’m 95% sure the tour will continue,” Yacoob said. “If I had a problem, I would have told Sri Lanka that they should not come.”
The issue stems from the England team’s refusal to play in two one-day internationals (ODI) against the Proteas after two members of their touring group tested positive for Covid-19.
Those tests were shown to be false positives and were later confirmed negative. The ECB urged its players to fulfill their obligations, but citing mental anguish, the England players challenged their own board.
His decision not only cost CSA around R30 million in streaming fees, but also caused reputational damage that nearly derailed the Sri Lanka tour and has still left a question mark over Australia’s visit to South Africa earlier of 2021.
The ever outspoken Yacoob, while maintaining a semblance of cordiality towards England, made it quite clear that he was unimpressed by their antics, which have put South African cricket under massive pressure.
“The only criticism [of the Covid-19 protocols] What I can do is that we were too lax with the English and their desire to do things that, in our strict opinion, they should not be doing, ”said Yacoob, clearly referring to England’s numerous outings to golf courses outside the UK. Biography. -safe environment.
“Unfortunately, we were stronger by preventing our players from doing things and allowing the visitors a little more laxity. We favor visitors just a little bit, not enough to compromise. The problem with that was that it led to some feelings of injustice in regards to our players. The board was very sorry. “
A report from Australia this week suggested that the Australians’ tour of South Africa could take place in Perth, with CSA earning all broadcast rates as if it were at home.
“About Australia, I have no information. But my understanding of the politics of cricket is that the three most powerful nations in cricket, Australia and England are two of them, they want to do things their own way and they want to make sure that the less powerful nations play with them, ”said Yacoob. deliberately.
“It depends on what Australia thinks is in their political interests, depending on what happened to England. I don’t know what Australia will do. Powerful people, and Australia is a powerhouse in cricket, they are generally laws unto themselves. “
CSA Cricket Director Graeme Smith said: “We will only have our first operational planning meeting with Cricket Australia next week. Until now there have been no commitments. “
More drama in the boardroom
Meanwhile, Yacoob confirmed that the CSA interim board had sidelined two of its members. Omphile Ramela and Xolani Vonya will no longer serve as directors after six board members voted in favor of their removal. Only one director abstained.
Ramela was viewed as an obstructionist while Vonya is still under a cloud of impropriety for his role in mismanagement and alleged embezzlement at the Easterns Cricket Union (ECU).
“I was surprised,” Yacoob said, referring to Ramela’s conduct at board meetings. “It was very obstructive. We spent two hours debating whether he would accept majority rule.
“We have started a process for the removal of a director, Mr. Ramela, in terms of the Corporations Law because, in general, he has been an obstacle in the affairs of the board and has tried to defend the indefensible.
“He refuses to accept the decision of the majority if he does not believe it is the correct one and feels that he needs to continue fighting. It does not have the discipline to accept a majority decision and it is practically impossible to handle ”.
Vonya was a controversial board appointment, who was nominated by the CSA Council of Members after Sports Minister Nathi Mthethwa stepped in to remove the previous board and name Yacoob to clean the cricket.
“We have also excluded Mr. Vonya from the board because Easterns has made very serious allegations of dishonesty against him,” Yacoob said.
“They claim to have everything ready for an investigation against him on October 24, but instead of facing it he resigned and then on October 25 he was nominated by the Council of Members to this meeting. They knew, or should have known, that he left the east in dire circumstances. “
Yacoob also hinted that despite an initial mandate to hold his positions for three months, the interim board has encountered obstacles from the Council of Members in its task of restoring cricket to a state of strong governance.
The board has already suspended CSA company secretary Welsh Gwaza after he discovered “misconduct” problems. The board is using the recently completed Funduzi forensic report in the CSA status as a waybill.
CSA Acting Chairman Rihan Richards said the Interim Board and Membership Council had resolved their differences and there was now “clearly defined space” for the board to do its job. Yacoob was less optimistic.
“I am not at all sure that the solution discussed with the Council of Members is viable and I am not sure that this will all end quickly,” he said.
Let’s see how much obstruction there is, but I and the majority of the board do not share Richards’ optimism. The Council of Members has the power to make a resolution to kick us all out tomorrow, but some want the process to be completed, others want to stop them but fear public exposure. So they are caught between a rock and a hard place.
“It is a very toxic environment and we are aware that some members of the Council of Members have taken over Gwaza.
“Anyone who is earning several million a year is not going to go quietly, he will fight as he can. And other members of the organization may have to be suspended because many aspects of the operations are not working.
“The objective of the obstructionists is to make sure that they are still there within three months to manipulate the problem. I suspect this is a specific design to hold up the board, to make sure we can do very little in the next three months.
“But we have to get rid of the troublesome staff in the organization and address fraud and corruption. The people who cause trouble should go. Our job is to run CSA correctly, to provide a level of short-term stability. Those who cause disruptions and problems have to go. ” DM
