Kimberley loses right to host women’s international fixture

Cricket SA was forced to remove the Kimberley Oval as the host venue of the third T20 between SA women and their Pakistan counterparts, because of concerns the venue will be stripped of its international status.

Cricket SA made the unprecedented decision on Tuesday to move the match - part of both teams’ preparation for the World Cup later this year - after an independent assessment confirmed that the ground “does not meet the required international norms and standards for match readiness”.

Willowmoore Park in Benoni will now host the match on February 16.

Cricket SA said that comprehensive inspections conducted over the past month identified several critical deficiencies related to the playing surface, outfield, practice facilities and overall compliance. According to the organisation, those shortcomings present potential risks and could compromise the integrity of play.

The Kimberley Oval has incurred punishment from the International Cricket Council, which has sanctioned it with two demerit points for each of the last two Women’s ODIs that were hosted there in 2024. In April that year, after a match with Sri Lanka, the ICC deemed the pitch “unfit” for play and described the outfield as “unsatisfactory”.

In December 2024, after the Proteas’ match against England, both the pitch and the outfield were deemed “unsatisfactory”. If the ground were to incur another demerit point within the next three years, it would be in danger of having its international credentials stripped away.

“While the decision to cancel an international fixture is never taken lightly, the findings of the assessment left us with no alternative. We cannot proceed with a match at a venue where the conditions may pose a threat to player safety or fail to meet international cricket requirements,” Cricket SA’s CEO, Pholetsi Moseki said in a statement.

“The safety of players, match officials, and spectators is our top priority.”

The Kimberley Oval has hosted 14 men’s ODIs - including three in the 2003 World Cup - one men’s T20 International, three Women’s T20Is and nine women’s ODIs. It is not among the venues slated to host matches in the 2027 men’s ODI World Cup.

The Northern Cape Cricket Union, which oversees the running of the Kimberley Oval, was put under administration by CSA last year, and in December the union’s former CEO Thapelo January and four other senior officials were dismissed following disciplinary procedures.

The maladministration by January and a host of other officials led to the venue being in a state of disrepair, and it is also understood that they owe the local municipality about R6-million in electricity costs. That figure is being disputed, but the municipality has still cut off electricity to the venue on different occasions. Such action during a match would be dire, when scoreboards, fridges, wifi and broadcast equipment need to be operating.

The outfield has also been damaged, due to a lack of maintenance, which, on top of extremely hot weather in the region, has caused further complications.

Cricket SA said it was engaging closely with the venue management to address the identified issues and ensure a clear plan for remedial action. Once all compliance measures have been satisfactorily met and verified, the venue may be reconsidered for future fixtures.

Cricket SA is expected to hold a meeting in the next week to determine if Northern Cape and Border Cricket - which was put under administration at the same time - should continue to be overseen by senior officials. Jesse Chellan was put in charge of reform in Kimberley and Greg Fredericks was given the job in East London.

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