Bacher denies threat to 2003 World Cup
Fakir Hassen
The 2003 cricket World Cup, to be hosted
by South Africa, is not under any threat of cancellation because
of the United Cricket Board of South Africa's decision to defy the International Cricket Council.
Ali Bacher, executive director of the CWC Committee, has said
this, stating he was misquoted about the implications of the UCBSA decision.
Bacher was widely reported in the media in Johannesburg as having said that
South Africa could lose the World Cup after the UCBSA decided
unilaterally to remove controversial referee Mike Denness from the third and final
Test against India, which statred on Friday at the Centurion.
This followed a refusal by the ICC to replace Denness, who meted
out sentences to six Indian players at the second Test at Port
Elizabeth earlier this week that has caused great anger. India had threatened to
pull out of the game if Denness was not removed.
But Bacher, suggesting that he had been misquoted, said he had
merely wanted
to put into context the fact that South Africa did not own the
CWC, but the
ICC did.
"There are no negative implications of the UCBSA action for the
World Cup,"
Bacher said.
"We are far down the road with various organisations, involvement
with sponsors and the ICC. Everything is going very well. The 2003
Cricket World
Cup will take place in South Africa in 14 months time," Bacher
emphasised.
The Mike Denness controversy
Indo-Asian News Service
India's tour of South Africa : Complete coverage
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