CSA not surprised at BCCI decision to snub South Africa for IPL hosting

Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Haroon Lorgat has said that they never had any plans to include the hosting of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in their forecasts as it had not been included in their financial planning.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that this year's IPL would begin in the UAE on April 16, before moving to India from May 1 and Bangladesh would be on standby should there be problems with the tournament hosting after India's national elections had taken place.

According to Sport24, although the hosting of the IPL would have been a bonus for CSA, however, Lorgat said that they had not ever bargained for the tournament happening in their country, adding that it is an Indian tournament and as such, they respect India's choice.

The confirmation put an end to speculation that South Africa would host some of the tournament, having successfully staged the entire 2009 event.

However, Lorgat said that they were not surprised at the BCCI decision as they believe the Indian board wants to play the tournament close to home, adding that CSA was informed of the decision before it went public.

Lorgat denied reports from India that CSA had refused to stage only part of the IPL, wanting the whole tournament or nothing, saying that such reports are exaggerated.