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Cape Town - Former Proteas wicketkeeper Mark Boucher says South African cricket is in a dire state and that the Mzansi Super League (MSL) will not solve Cricket South Africa's (CSA) problems.
CSA has been in the spotlight following the Proteas' seventh-place finish at the recent Cricket World Cup and their 3-0 Test series defeat to India.
Last week, CSA suspended three senior officials alleging they had neglected their duties in a payment dispute between the South African Cricketers Association (SACA) and CSA relating to last year's MSL.
The focus has turned to the local scene with the MSL getting under way on Friday with a repeat of last year's final as the Jozi Stars take on the Cape Town Blitz in Gauteng.
Tshwane Spartans coach Boucher says he wouldn't want people to think the T20 tournament is "sugarcoating" any problems.
"There might be quite a few people looking at this and saying we're sugarcoating the actual situation we are in with South African cricket at the moment," said Boucher, as quoted by SACricket Mag.
"We've got ourselves into a pretty bad state. Hopefully there are some clever heads there to try and turn things around."
Boucher firmly believes that the tournament will do well this year, but cautions we shouldn't rely on the tournament to fix SA cricket's issues.
"The tournament will be well supported as it was last year, but we've got to be very careful with putting too much emphasis on this tournament. There are bigger problems that need to be sorted out," he said.
"It's sad to read, watch and listen about our cricket. There's a lot of negativity."
The Tshwane Spartans kick-start their campaign against the Durban Heat at Kingsmead on Saturday (12:30).
- Compiled by Lynn Butler
