Cricket South Africa CEO Pholetsi Moseki says it is imperative that the Proteas win the 2027 World Cup that will be hosted in this country.
“To be honest, it is non-negotiable, we have to win the World Cup in 2027,” he said.
Moseki understands there are plenty of sceptics when it comes to all things South African cricket, specifically the administrative leadership, as well as the national men’s team.
Former selection convener Linda Zondi’s “Vision 2019” fell flat on its face and led to the worst performance by a Proteas team at a World Cup.
So “Project 2027” will be viewed with cynicism, which Moseki understands. “After a very difficult period which we have gone through, I expect the sport to be thriving by (2027), the renewal would have been embedded in the system.
"If we are not thriving by the time we are going to host a World Cup, then everything happening now would have been a spectacular failure,” he said.
That process of renewal includes creating a more stable administration while continuing to build trust between CSA, the public, players and its commercial partners. That trust was eroded by the maladministration which almost destroyed the organisation in 2020.
While the SA20 League, a central element of the “renewal”, is currently engendering plenty of excitement, the men’s Proteas team remains critical.
“The Proteas are a marquee product for us as CSA and when they don’t perform well it does impact the whole ecosystem,” said Moseki.
He described the embarrassing exit at the T20 World Cup and the recent Test series losses in England and Australia as “killer blows”, explaining how those defeats highlighted “poor succession planning” by CSA in the wake of the retirement of a number of great players.
It will be the job of CSA’s director of cricket, Enoch Nkwe, to not only implement “Project 2027” but also set the Proteas back on a path that makes them successful while reinvigorating development structures at the lowest levels.
Nkwe, who was in Australia where South Africa lost a three-match Test series 2-0, remains optimistic about the future of the Proteas. “That’s because of the talent in the country,” he said.
“We have been through some tough times... We have played some good cricket, but we have also lately not been putting up the runs with the bat.
"We have not been consistent and have to look at the system in general and ask ourselves ‘how do we ensure that we don’t make the same mistakes as in the past?’
“We need to be strategic and more creative. Yes, we can’t deny there are financial constraints but we should not make money an issue and say that makes our problems insurmountable,” Nkwe said about finding solutions for the Proteas.
The Proteas are in danger of missing out on automatic qualification for the 2023 tournament in India
CSA has racked up losses of more than R400m in the last two years — primarily because of the pandemic — which came on top of expenses of nearly R500m resulting from the failure of the Global League T20 and the Mzansi Super League.
Moseki said it was imperative that CSA finds money when Nkwe needs it.
“We are in the business of cricket and we have to come up with plans... if cricket collapses the whole reason for our existence disappears.
While understanding the financial predicament we are facing as an organisation, we need to find a way to get South African cricket back to where it belongs.”
The announcement on Sunday of the two new coaches for the men’s national team will set in motion a set of strategies Moseki hopes will improve the Test team, while laying a foundation for this year’s World Cup and the event in 2027.
“To be honest, it will be tricky; it’s going to be tough to get started. There will be an interim structure in place for the England (ODI) series, both coaches will start from February,” said Nkwe.
The Proteas are in danger of missing out on automatic qualification for the 2023 tournament in India. They need to win at least three of their remaining five ODIs — part of the ICC Super League criteria — and hope results in other series go their way to secure a top eight spot.
Nkwe, while not resigned to the team having to go through the qualifying tournament in Zimbabwe in June, is realistic about that prospect. “We have put ourselves in this situation,” he said.
“The qualifiers would be a serious test of our character. But I enjoy football, and there, it is the case that some big names have had to go through a qualifier to get into the World Cup and they can come out stronger from that process.”
As for Test cricket, Nkwe said despite the limited number of matches the Proteas will play in the next four-year cycle, the oldest format remains crucial to CSA.
His decision to split the coaching role and have a specialist “red ball” mentor illustrated the importance with which he and CSA viewed the Test format.
“We can’t neglect the most beautiful part of our game. What I’ve been encouraged by when travelling around the country and talking to our young players — 19- and 20-year olds — is that they remain motivated to play Test cricket. For them it is still the pinnacle. They want to experience what past players experienced.”
For all the love of the format expressed by Nkwe and Moseki, the reality is that aside from Tests involving the “big three” — England, Australia and India — it is a loss-making exercise financially for CSA.
That of course doesn’t mean they don’t want it to be played, just that structures need to be improved, and the Proteas as a Test team needs to be subsidised through events like the SA20.
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