South African Sports Minister on Friday said the govt would intervene in running of the country's troubled cricket association, leading Cricket South Africa into its 'greatest crisis'.
The minister said that the sports body has been stripped of funds and been derecognised. He ruled that the government will take decisions for the country's cricket body when sports officials fail to resolve the dispute.
This decision is likely to flare up as the ICC does not allow governments to interfere in national cricket bodies and has previously banned nations that violated the norm. However, ICC on Friday said that it is yet to receive any formal complaint about government interference.
Calling it a sad day for the country and its cricketers, Cricket South Africa's interim board chairperson said that the financial, economic sporting, and developmental consequences post the decision would be dire for cricket.