In a blow to the Women’s Proteas, the team’s tour to the UK next month to play five one-day internationals (ODIs) and two Twenty Twenty Internationals (T20Is) has been cancelled.
The English Cricket Board (ECB) had invited the Proteas to tour, but Cricket South Africa (CSA) declined the invitation because of current restrictions on international travel due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The series was originally supposed to be a tri-series between the two teams and India’s women’s team, but this fell through after India declined to travel to England because of the global health crisis.
According to Clare Conner, the ECB’s director of women’s cricket, a bio-secure bubble would have been instituted for the women, as has been the case for the current matches being played by the men’s side. She said: ‘We have been committed from the outset to deliver the same bio-secure standards for both men’s and women’s international cricket, an investment that included exclusive hotel use for teams, chartered flights and medical provisions. An ECB team, with support from the Incora County Ground, Derby, has created a dedicated behind-closed-doors environment to host all of our women’s internationals.’
According to Lungani Zama, a sports journalist, the ECB would have footed the bill of over R10 million.
The decision not to tour, despite significant precautions being taken, is another blow to the beleaguered sport in South Africa. In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement’s growing traction around the world, a number of black players who had played for South Africa have recently alleged they were exposed to racism when they were in the national side. Thami Tsolekile, who played a handful of matches for the Proteas, accused former captain and current director of cricket, Graeme Smith, of racism.
In addition, administratively the game is in chaos, with acting CEO Jacques Faul stepping down recently. Said Faul: ‘CSA is in a worse position than we were in December – there are issues around transformation and race and there is a lot of uncertainty over the leadership and other issues in the organisation.’