Cricketers fed up with ‘bungling’

SOUTH Africa’s cricketers are running out of patience with the sport’s administrators.

And it is the players who hold the balance of power in a game that cannot exist without them.

The South African Cricketers’ Association’s memorandum of understanding with Cricket South Africa (CSA) expires at the end of the month and CSA has‚ according to the association‚ been dragging its heels on negotiating a new agreement.

CSA said in a statement on Wednesday that it had “outlined plans to conclude a new [agreement] with [the cricketers’ association] as a matter of urgency”.

“In the event of negotiations concerning the new [agreement] not being completed by April 30, CSA has indicated its willingness to extend the existing contracts for a further period with the intention of having the new agreement in place by July this year‚” the statement said.

But a cricketers’ association statement yesterday indicated that the players – who represent cricket’s only viable source of revenue – have had enough of the suits’ bungling.

“We are both surprised and disappointed that CSA has seen fit to make a public statement announcing plans relating to the [agreement] without giving us any proper opportunity to respond to‚ or to deal with‚ these first‚” the association’s chief executive, Tony Irish, said.

“The suggested plans have caused consternation among players and they require a response from [the cricketers’ association].

“The indication of further possible delays and the unworkability of certain aspects of what is being suggested are particular matters of concern to us.

“The suggestion also that there have actually been negotiations conducted by [association] officials with CSA on the [agreement] to date is also not correct. Negotiations on the key elements have yet to start.

“[The association] has been doing everything possible from its side for approximately three months to engage with CSA on the [agreement] and to deal with the key elements to enable player contracts to be finalised well in advance of April 30.

“In past [agreements] the key elements have always been agreed by the end of February at the latest to ensure a proper player contracting process can take place well in advance of expiry dates.

“Unfortunately our attempts to date have been met with very little response from CSA and much of our correspondence has gone unanswered.

“The delays have created an environment of uncertainty for players‚ and also for franchises who wish to secure their players.

This comes at a time when South African cricket needs to do whatever it can to retain its players in the face of competing opportunities afforded to players in the emerging T20 leagues market and also in the UK.” – TimesLIVE