JOHANNESBURG - Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) board of directors will discuss the findings of its dual inquiries into the failure to host the T20 Global League at the next board meeting on December 20.
The organisation’s stand-in chief executive, Thabang Moroe, confirmed on Wednesday that reports from the two inquiries - an internal audit and a review of CSA’s governance - have been forwarded to the federation.
“Once the Board have discussed the findings, I expect they will act on them,” said Moroe. In what capacity they will act remains to be seen but Moroe added that they may take the route of an “independent external inquiry.”
Moroe couldn’t confirm if the findings would be made public. “That’s for the board to decide, I assume an extract of the report maybe made public.”
The internal audit and review followed CSA’s decision to postpone the T20 Global League following the failure to secure a broadcast partner. It also led to a parting of ways between the organisation and its former CEO Haroon Lorgat, who was at the forefront of trying to establish the league. Moroe said last month that CSA anticipated making a loss of R345-million following the failure to start the tournament.
Despite the absence of a broadcast sponsor, CSA had piled money into the project, upgrading various stadiums with new lights and scoreboards. It also hosted a player auction, where players were distributed to eight franchises for fees ranging between R130 000 to R1.7-million. Moroe also said that CSA remain committed to playing the tournament next year, with four proposals currently being discussed by the board.
“We need a new model, one that suits the South African cricket landscape and corporate demands,” said Moroe. “The previous model was highly ambitious.”
Among the discussions is whether to remain with eight city based franchises, as was the case in the original concept. “It could be six teams even, these are things that are being talked about now. Obviously, there were eight owners in that previous model, but they understand our commitments in reviewing and studying new models that we want to also start afresh.”
Meanwhile, Moroe also confirmed that the organisation had reached an agreement with the professional players representatives, the SA Cricketers Association, regarding compensation for the salaries they didn’t pick up following the postponement of the T20 GL. The details of the agreement must be clarified by CSA’s finance committee, but a formal announcement is expected soon.