CRICKET
Peter Robinson
South Africa and India will risk the wrath of the International Cricket Council (ICC) by dispensing with the services of controversial match referee Mike Denness for the third match starting at SuperSport Park on Friday.
United Cricket Board (UCB) chief executive Gerald Majola said the South African and Indian boards had agreed to appoint their own match referee. This would amount to defiance of the ICC’s support for Denness.
Denness infuriated Indian players, officials and supporters on Tuesday when he imposed disciplinary measures on six Indian players, including a suspended sentence on star batsman Sachin Tendulkar.
Calls went up in India for Sourav Ganguly’s team to be brought home with Board of Control for Cricket in India president Jagmohan Dalmiya insisting India would not play in the third Test unless Denness was replaced.
With the ICC backing Denness and Dalmiya and the Indian authorities refusing to back down, South African and Indian officials reached a compromise of their own which entailed appointing their own match referee Denis Lindsay and informing Denness that he would not be required at SuperSport Park.
The consequences for both countries could be severe, with sanctions such as expulsion or suspension from the ICC possible. South Africa could also be denied the right to stage the 2003 World Cup.
From the South African perspective, the cost of cancelling the Test has been estimated at R35-million.
The UCB has confirmed that the South African government instructed the UCB to take whatever action was necessary to ensure that the tour went ahead.
It is understood Denness was asked to stand down from the match voluntarily, but that he refused to do so. It is almost certain the Test will not be recognised as official by the ICC.