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Cricket South Africa's (CSA) troubled T20 Global League has been postponed to 2018 in an embarrassing climb-down for the organisation which launched the tournament amid great fanfare in London in June.
Failure to secure a suitable broadcast package and a title sponsor meant CSA stood to lose about $25 million, representing roughly half of the organisation’s cash reserves.
"We have not come to this decision lightly,” acting CSA CEO Thabang Moroe said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Having discussed it with all our stakeholders including the franchise owners, we believe that the interest of the league should be our first priority. We have re-assessed our strategy and believe that postponing the first edition of the T20 Global League to next year will serve us well.”
A number of top international players had been signed for the 2017 competition, including England one-day captain Eoin Morgan and former England batsman Kevin Pietersen.
The six-week tournament, due to feature eight teams, was scheduled to run from November 3 to December 16.
Former CSA CEO Haroon Lorgat left his job suddenly last month citing a clash with the organisation’s board, widely reported in South African media to be about his role in setting up the T20 Global League.