Home
Cricket News
Icc Wait On Before Pressing Panic Button On Crisis In South Africa Cricket

ICC wait on before pressing 'panic button' on crisis in South Africa Cricket

In what would come as a relief for cricket fans and players in South Africa, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has refused to intervene in the turmoil and impasse between the government and Cricket South Africa.

“The ICC encourages Members to work with governments to resolve issues. Not all government intervention is problematic and for the ICC to get involved it requires a formal complaint from our Members that it is unwanted,” ICC said in a statement.

The global governing body of the game has said that not every intervention from governments is problematic and that even funds and financial helps they offer come under the umbrella of government interventions.

“ICC doesn’t want to press the panic button yet and want them to solve the issue themselves. We aren’t saying that the government intervention, in this case, is problematic or not. It is a general view in terms of the process we follow. When the government grants funds etc. under certain conditions that are also termed as government intervention,” PTI quoted an ICC source as saying.

Earlier, captains of the Tests, ODIs and T20Is had expressed concerns that the government intervention and an ongoing governance dispute might see South Africa facing a ban by the ICC and disqualification for the ICC World T20 scheduled to be held later this year in India.

“At a time when we should be enthusiastic about the future, we have to be concerned about the future. The Proteas Men’s team has an ICC World T20 event in November. The current state of cricket administration undermines our preparation in this regard. It may even lead to our suspension from this event should the ICC decide to suspend South Africa,” captains had said.

Discover more

SL vs BAN | 19-year-old Shoriful Islam gets maiden call up for 1st Test

Left-arm seamer Shoriful Islam has received a maiden call up in the Bangladesh Test team in less than 24 hours before the first Test against Sri Lanka is scheduled to commence. Islam is just 19 years old and the tourists have added him to the squad as they are looking to play a ‘pace-dependent bowling attack’ as per the skipper Mominul Haque. "I think our batting and pace bowling will be crucial. The pace bowlers with experience and those who are playing regularly, like [Abu Jayed] Rahi, Ebadat [Hossain], and Taskin [Ahmed] are more dependable. We will have a pace-dependent bowling attack but it doesn't mean we will lose the sting in our bowling,” Haque said in the pre-match press conference. Islam burst onto the scenes after a brilliant campaign for Bangladesh in the ICC Under-19 World Cup last year. He scalped nine wickets at an average of 15.77. Islam’s addition to the squad can also be seen as a replacement for Mustafizur Rahaman who is representing the Rajasthan Royals in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League. Along with him, Bangladesh will also miss the experience of Shakib Al Hasan who is playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. The first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh is scheduled to start on April 21 at Pallekelle in Kandy which will also host the second and final Test of the series from April 29.

Moeen Ali is the guy we lacked last year: CSK Coach Fleming

Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming has praised all-rounder Moeen Ali especially after his match-winning performance against Rajasthan Royals Monday night at the Wankhede. "He is adding an all-round aspect to our game which we lacked last year. His contribution was just what we were looking for,” Fleming said in the post-match press conference. “We are absolutely happy with the way he has started," the coach added. Along with his quickfire 26 with the bat and 3/7 with the ball in the last game, Ali has so far racked up 108 runs with the bat at a healthy strike rate of more than 150 and has also claimed four wickets. Former New Zealand captain also touched upon the aspect of opening batting being an issue with Ruturaj Gaikwad not delivering so far. "Robin Uthappa is waiting and Gaikwad has a little bit of time last year with the way he played. You know our philosophy, we give our players a good run,” Fleming said about the plans of the team. MS Dhoni, for the first time, was seen in his vintage self in the last game when he hit a few fours, the Kiwi national and companion of Dhoni since 2008 IPL feels that the great man is returning to form and can become a dangerous prospect for the CSK going forward. "Yes, his form is restoring, every time he gets some balls in the middle he's going to get better and better," Fleming said. "There will be opportunities where we would probably look to throw MS Dhoni up as with (Ravindra) Jadeja and others," he added. The Chennai team next faces Kolkata Knight Riders in the second match of the double header's on April 21 at the Wankhede.

Will cherish playing with you: Sakariya writes heartfelt message for MS Dhoni

Former India captain MS Dhoni has been an inspiration for a number of young cricketers. To add to this list is the Rajasthan Royals left-arm pacer Chetan Sakariya. Sakariya who made his IPL debut in this edition of the cash-rich league paid tribute to the Chennai Super Kings skipper in a social media post. “I admire you since i was a child and today i got the opportunity to play with you, it was the best moment of my life and i will cherish it forever.There won't be anyone like you ever.. thanks a lot for inspiring all of us throughout the career,” Sakariya wrote. The left-arm fast bowler has had a decent start to his IPL career after he returned with a four-for in his very first match against Punjab Kings while picking up three wickets against CSK on Monday in Mumbai. Adding to Sakariya’s delight was the wicket of Dhoni as he removed the aggressive batsman for 18 off 17 during the clash between the two sides. The left-armer who plays for Saurashtra in the domestic circuit has represented the team in 15 First-Class matches picking up 41 wickets while has been a part of 7 List A and 19 T20 games. He has 10 List A and 34 T20 wickets to his name so far respectively. CSK continued their winning run in the IPL 2021 after beating the Royals by 45 runs to grab the second victory on the trot. Chasing, 189, RR are restricted to 143/9 in the allotted 20 overs. Buttler who top-scored with 49 off 35 looked in some good form before he was undone by Ravindra Jadeja. Buttler’s departure saw a fall of wickets at regular intervals for RR. Moeen Ali emerged to be the pick of the bowlers after he returned with figures of 3/7 in 3 overs during the course. Earlier, CSK rode on some good performances from the batting unit to put 188/9 in 20 overs on the board.

Fit-again, de Grandhomme & Wagner among New Zealand players vaccinated ahead of England tour

The New Zealand national cricket team along with all the Olympic bound athletes will be vaccinated due to "reasons of national significance" in the Kiwi nation’s first vaccine drive against the deadly Coronavirus. Colin de Grandhomme, who missed the whole home summer of Test cricket mainly due to not being able to bowl, has returned to the fire after successful ankle surgery. He is most likely to be included in the Blackcaps scheme of things on the England tour where the team plays two Tests against England before taking on India in the inaugural World Test Championship. "Since I've had the surgery the ankle has felt really good and it seems to keep getting better and it feels normal again for a change," de Grandhomme, 34 said on the sidelines of his first practice session in Mount Maunganui. "Looks like I'm tracking well at the moment and should be ready to go for ball one if I'm needed," added Zimbabwe born. With England making India a red list country, the four Kiwi Test squad members in skipper Kane Williamson, Mitchell Santner, Trent Boult and Kyle Jamieson, not getting vaccinated is a prime concern. The players from India would most likely require to undergo an extended period of quarantine in England. Neil Wagner, who would be a lethal option in England has also started training with the duke ball and was seen warming up in Maunganui after being vaccinated alongside de Grandhomee. "It's got a little bit different characteristics to what a Kookaburra does so just trying to get used to it and adapting to the different things we'll come across in England," Wagner said about how he is going to adapt to the English duke ball and the conditions. "[It's about] not getting too far ahead of yourself with a Duke ball that tends to swing around a little bit and try too hard,” he added.