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Cape Town - Cricket South Africa's (CSA) new T20 competition, which will be run in partnership with satellite giants SuperSport International, is still awaiting the approval of the board with regard to how it is going to work.
READ: T20 Global League given green light, set for name change
When CSA announced the deal to replace the now defunct Global T20 a few weeks ago, the general refrain from the cricket fraternity - from chief executives to the players' association - was that while they welcomed it they didn't have a clue how it would work.
On Friday, CSA acting chief executive Thabang Moroe said the reason for that was the fact that the venture between the two equal partners had yet to gain the full approval of the board pending some key issues.
"We're not holding back information because there's nothing to give, really," said Moroe.
"In the next couple of weeks the T20 board will decide what model we're working on. Currently we have one for eight teams and another for six, and the pros and cons for both for the board to decide on.
"Once they do we can communicate everything around the league."
Moroe said a title sponsor, the absence of which was said to be one of the reasons the Global T20 was postponed and ultimately shelved, had yet to be secured: "We're working on a title sponsor and we're hoping to make an announcement in this regard very shortly."
Moroe also took the opportunity to address the grievances of the Global T20 owners, who criticised the unusual nature of the deal struck with SuperSport.
Ordinarily a broadcaster buys the broadcast rights and earns its money through advertising and selling on said rights, as opposed to also earning as co-owners.
"That's their view," he said. "The deal being unusual doesn't mean it's unethical or wrong. It's in the interests of SuperSport as a broadcaster to make this deal work, they want to make it as global an event as we want to."
Asked if they were happy with what they stood to receive financially for the broadcast rights this time, given that SuperSport had baulked at their original asking price last year, Moroe said: "We're more than happy. The (three-year) deal has given us an indication of how much they want it to work."
Looking at the details of the new competition, Moroe said it was pretty much the same one Haroon Lorgat, his predecessor, had worked to put together, the exception being that "we and SuperSport will own the teams and the teams will be run by the affiliates".
He said the affiliates would still have to bid to host the teams, Moroe's explanation being: "While the Wanderers might pick itself, we still want the Gauteng Cricket Board to tell us what they're going to bring to the table as hosts."
Moroe let it slip that the Ram Slam T20, which has been the country's domestic T20 competition for years and came to CSA's rescue last year when the Global T20 failed to take off, could well make way for the new competition.
"The Ram Slam will still be there this year, but we haven't negotiated for next year. The calendar's already clogged up, and with the league we don’t have enough space for all these competitions. Which one has to make space, I don't know."
