Kugandrie Govender Becomes First Woman To Head Cricket South Africa

Cricket South Africa (CSA) has appointed Kugandrie Govender as its acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) on Thursday. The new appointee will take over the operation from Dr Jacques Faul who has stepped down from the post on Tuesday. Govender is the first woman CEO to head the sports organisation in South Africa. This decision came ahead of England's tour to South Africa in November for ODI and T20 matches.

CONFIRMED: The Board of Cricket South Africa has announced the appointment of Kugandrie Govender as acting Chief Executive Officer of CSA with immediate effect. pic.twitter.com/5p2mBkiFif

— Cricket South Africa (@OfficialCSA) August 19, 2020

"We believe that Kugandrie is the right person to drive the organisation forward during this period," CSA President Beresford Williams said in a statement. He also mentioned that Govender brings 23 years of experience to the table and that she is prepared to "fulfill this role with excellence," Cricbuzz reported. Govender also commented saying, "CSA's mandate is to ensure that cricket is an inclusive sporting code for all South Africans. It is important to improve our reputation both locally and internationally," News24 reported.

What You Should Know

• Kugandrie Govender takes over as the acting Chief Executive Officer at the Cricket South Africa.
• Govender is the first woman to head the organisation as acting CEO after Jacques Faul stepped down this week.

According to a report by ESPNcricinfo, Govender's appointment came when CSA continues to struggle with several crises and deal with the controversial case of suspended CEO Thabang Moroe, who is facing serious charges. The former chief executive of CSA is being investigated, hence has been suspended from the office since December last year.

Govender has previously served as the chief commercial officer (COO) at the CSA. She has a degree in marketing and has been excelling in the cricket industry as a marketing and media executive. "We are confident that she will propel the many strategic initiatives that CSA undertakes to inspire and unify our stakeholders, partners, and employees, to continue the work of building the reputation of cricket and more importantly CSA, so as to contribute to its sporting competitiveness," Williams assured.

Prior to that, she worked as a sales executive for various media companies, including Octagon productions. She was also a business development manager for a strategic marketing company and most recently she headed the sales and marketing department at a school.

Also Read: ‘I am a Bit of an Internal Rebel’ – Sania Mirza Shows How She Lost 26kgs in 4 Months

Feature Image Credit: ESPN Cricinfo

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