Cricket Australia to part ways with chief executive Kevin Roberts: Reports
Jun 15, 2020
Melbourne [Australia], June 15 : Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive Kevin Roberts is set to part ways with the board due to his stewardship of the game during the coronavirus pandemic.
There are speculations that Cricket Australia would appoint an interim chief executive until the search for the permanent candidate is on.
Sources close to the board said his departure was due to be announced on Wednesday. His exit is set to come only 20 months since Roberts, who was previously chief operating officer at CA, won the job running Australian cricket. He succeeded James Sutherland, who occupied the post for 17 years until his departure in October 2018, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Roberts, 47, was contracted until the end of next year but is set to follow Todd Greenberg (NRL) and Raelene Castle (Rugby Australia) as the third CEO of a major Australian sporting code sacked in the past two months.
Roberts was widely criticised from nearly all quarters since the decision to stand down the majority of staff on 20 per cent pay in April.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, CA, by comparison, has faced sustained opposition from the Australian Players' Association, as well as state associations led by NSW and Queensland, over its cost-cutting during and financial projections during the pandemic.
There have also been complaints about a lack of detail from the head office. The latest flashpoint was a controversial downgrading last week of forecast revenue for 2020/21 by more than USD 200 million, to which the ACA has lodged a notice of dispute with CA.