Cape Town - South African cricket chief Haroon Lorgat is expected to be censured on Tuesday, opening the way for India to fulfil their tour obligations to this country at the end of the year.
It is understood Lorgat is to be withdrawn from duties relating to the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) and the International Cricket Council (ICC) pending an investigation by the world body into allegations against him.
Cricket South Africa (CSA) and the BCCI have been at loggerheads over the proposed Indian tour since CSA released the tour schedule on July 8.
The CSA’s appointment of Lorgat on July 20 has also been the cause of consternation in India because of the strained relations he had with the BCCI during his term as ICC chief executive from 2008 to last year.
The CSA and the BCCI are expected to release a statement on Tuesday confirming that the tour is to comprise two Tests and three One-Day Internationals, compared with the three Tests, seven ODIs and three Twenty20 Internationals originally scheduled.
The ICC is also to release a statement, documenting the inquiry into Lorgat. It is understood the CSA chief is to be relieved of the two major components of his job, but is to be allowed to continue his domestic duties and dealings with other ICC members.
It is believed the allegations relate to Lorgat’s role in the statement by David Becker, former legal head of the ICC and now among CSA’s legal advisers, that should India not fulfil their tour to South Africa, there could be legal implications for the BCCI under the ICC’s Future Tours Programme.
Becker also suggested BCCI president Narayanaswami Srinivasan had been involved in unethical conduct, saying “there is one man (Srinivasan) who makes decisions at (ICC) board level and they are certainly not in the interests of world cricket”.
Although Becker has been quoted as saying the statement expressed his “personal views” and Lorgat or “anyone else” at CSA “had nothing to do with my comments”, the issue was raised at an ICC executive board meeting in London at the weekend. CSA president Chris Nenzani and Srinivasan met on the sidelines to discuss the tour.
The implications for CSA and its affiliates if India do not tour South Africa could entail a loss of about R300 million in revenue. A truncated tour would also involve significant losses.
The itinerary has not been confirmed, although reports in India have indicated the New Year Test at Newlands may be in jeopardy.
Cape Times