Jacques Faul steps down as Cricket SA leadership continues to crumble

Cricket South Africa (CSA) has been plunged deeper into chaos, with acting chief executive Jacques Faul resigning with immediate effect, hot on the heels of long-term president Chris Nenzani.

The departure of Nenzani, who had been the longest-serving CSA president after being elected for the first time in 2013 and extending his term twice through constitutional amendments, was confirmed by CSA in a statement released on Monday morning.

He was replaced on a temporary basis by CSA vice-president Beresford Williams, who was appointed as CSA acting president until next month’s annual general meeting.

The organisation also revealed that suspended chief operations officer Naasei Appiah had been officially dismissed following the completion of his disciplinary process.

“CSA views the conclusion of this matter as critical in allowing the organisation to firmly focus its resources and energy towards serving the game of cricket,” the federation said.

According to CSA sources, however, Faul had also subsequently tendered his immediate resignation.

Faul had announced at the end of last month that he would step down from his role as acting CEO on September 15, with his contract being extended on a month-to-month basis.

It was believed the CSA board had stripped him of his powers, resulting in his decision to leave the embattled organisation immediately.

Faul was thrust into the role of acting CEO after Thabang Moroe was suspended nine months ago, triggering a forensic audit and a disciplinary process which had still not been finalised.

Last December, CSA was facing deficits of close to a billion rand. It was also fighting the players’ association in court and alienating major sponsors.

Since then, Faul had ensured there had been no retrenchments through the Covid-19 pandemic and mended relationships with the players’ association, sponsors and media.

The appointment of Graeme Smith as director of cricket, and then Mark Boucher as Proteas head coach, saw the struggling national team rally somewhat, beating a powerful Australian side 3-0 in an ODI series earlier this year.

It was expected that company secretary Welsh Gwaza, a strong supporter of Moroe, would be appointed as acting CEO.

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