South African cricketer Beyers Swanepoel has been denied a No-Objection Certificate to play county cricket. The new season starts later today. Not just that, Cricket South Africa (CSA) and Lions, his domestic team, will also take action against the allrounder, for, he brought the game into disrepute by walking out on Lions during the One-Day Cup final.
What happened was this: this past Sunday, after bowling his quota of 10 overs, Swanepoel quit the game, citing he had to take a flight to England for his county cricket stint. The evening before, he had asked his NOC to be signed too. The club had no prior knowledge of his flight to England, and the NOC wasn’t approved.
It is understood Swanepoel will not contest the charges. However, it’s not clear what his next move will be. Does he want to play in South Africa? If not, he can stay in England and continue his county cricket with Worcestershire. But then that will be the end of his South Africa aspirations.
However, CSA has advised that no assumptions should be made before they carry out their process and go to the bottom of things. “These standards are fundamental to preserving fairness, transparency, and the credibility of the game for players, match officials, teams, broadcasters, sponsors, and supporters,” a CSA statement said.
It’s a mess now!
Meanwhile, former England spinner and now director of cricket at Worcestershire, Ashley Giles has expressed his disappointment at the development, but at the same time, he gave the indication that now the county side could do nothing in the matter. The CSA and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) are in touch over Swanepoel.
“It’s difficult to explain why whatever has happened has happened, but it has happened, and Beyers would probably say he’s made a bit of an error in hindsight,” Giles told BBC Hereford and Worcester.
“I can say there was no pressure on our side on Beyers’ arrival in the country at that time, or taking those steps. People make mistakes. Beyers is a good man, a good lad. He’s made an error in this case, and we’re trying to work our way through it,” Giles added.
As a result of the Swanepoel faux pas, old horse Oliver Hannon-Dalby has been taken on board as a replacement, on a short-term loan deal from Warwickshire.
“While the circumstances surrounding this move are not ideal, it was important for us to bring in someone who could settle quickly, contribute immediately and provide a genuine threat with the ball in the opening stages of the season,” Alan Richardson, Worcestershire’s head coach, said.
The club said in a statement: “A further update on Beyers Swanepoel’s situation will be provided in due course.”
