Dropping Denness is 'pragmatic': SA minister

Replacing Mike Denness as match referee for the third Test between South Africa and India was the most "pragmatic" step in a difficult situation, according to South Africa's Minister of Sport.

"This in no way should be viewed as an attempt to discredit the integrity of Mr Denness," Minister of Sport Ngconde Balfour said in a statement on Thursday.

"But (it should) rather be seen as a pragmatic way of addressing an issue that is not of the making of the South African cricket authorities."

The United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA) ousted former England captain Denness and appointed South African Denis Lindsay to officiate in the final Test after Indian authorities threatened to boycott the match.

"We have tremendous respect for the ICC (International Cricket Council) and its independence as an international controlling body," Balfour said.

"We do not for a moment doubt the integrity or credentials of the ICC or any of its officials acting on its behalf.

"However, we find ourselves in an invidious position in that we are caught in the middle of differences between the ICC and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

"The decisions of the match referee to act against members of the Indian team in the second Test played at Port Elizabeth has resulted in the final Test now being in the balance as the Indians have indicated that they are not prepared to play if the match referee is retained."

Denness has been at the centre of a row between the ICC and the BCCI after he sanctioned six Indian players on Tuesday in the drawn second Test in Port Elizabeth.

BCCI chairman Jagmohan Dalmiya called for Denness to be removed after he found Sachin Tendulkar guilty of doctoring the ball in the Port Elizabeth match.

Tendulkar was given a suspended one-match ban and fined while Denness also sanctioned five other Indian players, including captain Saurav Ganguly, for bringing the game into disrepute through excessive appealing.

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Mail Cricket Editor