Acting CSA chief Faul resigns

Jacques Faul, CSA acting chief executive, tendered a letter of resignation to the board on Thursday but has accepted their request to reconsider. Faul's intended departure is yet another administrative setback for the body, which have been entangled in a bonus scandal for close to two years and have not yet resolved the case against suspended chief executive Gerald Majola.

In his letter, Faul cited a "sense of hostility," and a "campaign to discredit" him as his reasons for resigning. "Certain board members have lost trust (or never had any) in my judgement and seek to micro-manage operations," Faul stated in the letter.

While Faul's letter did not specify what had caused the schism between the board and himself, ESPNcricinfo understands that there was displeasure surrounding the recent sponsorship deal signed with Momentum. CSA secured the financial services company as a corporate backer after a season in which sponsorship was sparse but not everyone was happy with the decision.

The concern is believed to be with Momentum's parent company, Rand Merchant Bank, of whom Paul Harris is a co-founder. Harris is a former chairman of CSA's remunerations committee and was in office when the much publicised bonuses that led to the scandal were paid out. Majola and other staff members received a collective R4.7 million (US$ 671.428) in bonuses after the hosting of the 2009 IPL and Champions Trophy but those payments were not disclosed to CSA's remunerations committee and were picked up in a subsequent audit report as irregularities. Harris has since criticised CSA's corporate governance and was one of the strongest voices against Majola when matters came to a head towards the end of 2010.

Although Majola, who is awaiting disciplinary action, and Harris are no longer involved at the CSA, the board has remained "deeply divided," as Faul put it, into pro- and anti-Majola camps. It was the constant infighting that led Faul to resign from his post but he has since been talked into reviewing his decision. Sources close to the organisation said that Faul was surprised by the support he was offered by the board when he informed them of his resignation and he may be persuaded into staying.

The South African Cricketers' Association has come out in support* of Faul. "I have worked closely with Jacques Faul over the last few months in his capacity as acting Ceo," Tony Irish, the SACA chief, said. "He is a cricket person through and through and is doing his best to do the right thing operationally for the game. In the short time of his involvement he has been instrumental in securing the return of major sponsors to cricket. He has an open and honest leadership style, which builds relationships within the game, and is doing well in extremely difficult circumstances. He needs, and deserves, to be supported."

Faul was appointed as the acting chief executive of the CSA following Majola's suspension in March 2012. Should Faul continue in the role, it will likely only be until October when CSA will hold their AGM. They are due to restructure their board by then and appoint a full time chief executive, provided Majola's hearing has been completed.

Failing a successful outcome for Majola, a new chief executive will have to be appointed. Haroon Lorgat, former ICC chief executive whose tenure ended last week, has expressed interest in the job, although he clarified that it would be subject to a complete board restructure.

Majola's disciplinary hearing has faced numerous delays. It was originally supposed to be complete by May 31 but has yet to begin because of various bureaucratic delays.

*17.30 GMT, July 6: This story has been updated to include SACA's reactions.