Smith appointed acting Proteas Director of Cricket

Smith appointed acting Proteas Director of Cricket

Cricket South Africa has confirmed that Graeme Smith has been appointed as acting Director of Cricket.

Graeme Smith rates Proteas’ chances at Cricket World Cup / ECR YouTube
Graeme Smith rates Proteas’ chances at Cricket World Cup / ECR YouTube


The former Proteas captain has taken up the position in a temporary capacity in the latest appointment at the embattled organisation.

Smith's appointment comes just days after Jacques Faul took over as acting Chief Executive Officer of Cricket South Africa following Thabang Moroe's suspension from the position. The latter is being investigated for alleged misconduct and failure in his line of work.

Smith had been linked to the vacant Director of Cricket position for some time but had publicly stated concerns that he would not receive the necessary support or freedom to run the national team.

Faul says those concerns have been cleared up with Smith, who will be given the necessary support to take the national team forward.

“I am delighted that Graeme has agreed to assist Cricket South Africa up until the IPL next year. Obviously, Graeme has had his concerns during the course of the last few months, but I am pleased to say that we have overcome those concerns and I look forward to working with him to urgently address pressing cricketing matters in particular," Faul said in a statement from Cricket South Africa.

“Graeme is statistically the most successful Test captain in the history of the game,” added Faul. “He is a natural leader and his knowledge of the game is second to none. To have him on board to work with the professional cricket arm of CSA, as well as the cricketing pipeline, which is so vital for our game, is a massive shot in the arm for CSA during this period.”

Smith takes over at a difficult time for the Proteas, as they look to quickly rebuild ahead of their incoming Test series against England which gets underway in two weeks time.

Nevertheless the acting Director of Cricket says he's excited to dive head first into his work.

“I’ve publicly stated a number of times that I would love to assist CSA in this difficult time, particularly in developing this new role of Director of Cricket. I’m still as passionate about South African cricket as I ever was and I’m looking forward to getting stuck into the role. There is a lot of work to be done in the next few weeks and months and my objective will always be to make a positive impact during my tenure.”

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