Cricket fans shortchanged

THE peak audience of more than twomillion South Africans who watched live Proteas' Test cricket on SABC channels last season will be denied that pleasure this summer.

Instead, the national broadcaster has relegated the Tests that the world's top-ranked team will play against New Zealand to highlights packages.

However, full live coverage of the Proteas' three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 matches against the Black Caps has been secured.

The agreement was struck yesterday after negotiations between Cricket SA and the SABC that CSA described as "disappointing" - not surprising considering it took what The Times understands was a R12-million loss on the deal.

CSA originally put a price of R30-million on the rights, which it revised to R23-million. The SABC agreed to provide R8-million in airtime, but would cough up only R3-million for the rights.

And that after CSA had withheld free-to-air rights from its contract with Supersport, which would probably have been willing to pay the requested fee for them - and might have the opportunity to do so in years to come.

"We could have made the [SABC] decision on either an emotional or a commercial basis, and we went with our emotions," CSA commercial manager Marc Jury said yesterday.

"CSA currently holds the free-to-air rights, but we will need to reconsider what we do with them."

All of South Africa's matches will be broadcast live on Supersport, but its audience - an average of just 156544 for Tests last season - makes it a minnow compared with the SABC.

CSA acting CEO Jacques Faul said: "We are very disappointed that we can't have Test cricket live on free-to-air television."

That was not the impression gained on the SABC side of the fence.

"The decision to broadcast these matches is a clear indication that we take our mandate seriously and we are cognisant that the public deserves to see its cricket team - which is rated No1 in the world in Test cricket and also highly in the other formats of the game," SABC head of sport Sizwe Nzimande said in a CSA statement.

An indication of how out of touch the SABC is with its cricket audience was belied in a statement issued by SABC spokesman Kaizer Kganyago in which the Proteas were described as "rated No1 in the world in all formats of the game".

In fact, South Africa are ranked second in one-day cricket and fifth in the T20 format.

The Test highlights packages will run from 1.55pm to 2.45pm and 10.05pm to 11pm on weekdays, from 1pm to 3pm and 9.30pm to 11pm on Saturdays, and from 2pm to 4pm and 10pm to midnight on Sundays.