Floodlight failure could not have been detected pre-match: Newlands management

The floodlight failure received a lot of flak on social media with many suggesting that load shedding could have been the issue.

The fifth and final ODI – an inconsequential one – between South Africa and Sri Lanka was brought to an abrupt end due to a floodlight failure at Newlands on Saturday. Chasing 226, South Africa were coasting towards a victory when the incident occurred that halted play for the night – the Proteas winning by 41 runs via the DLS method to sweep the series 5-0. (ALSO READ: South Africa secure 5-0 sweep against Sri Lanka after floodlight failure)

The floodlight failure received a lot of flak on social media with many suggesting that load shedding could have been the issue. South Africa has been grappling with an energy supply crisis and Cape Town has been hit with multiple daily power cuts.

According to a statement released by the Western Province Cricket Association (WPCA) on Tuesday, the floodlight failure could not have been detected before the match. WPCA chief executive Nabeal Dien expressed regret at the lighting failure and explained the cause of the problem.

“According to our electrical engineers, there was an underground cable that short-circuited due to rodents or age,” he said. (ALSO READ: 1st T20I: In-form South Africa seek to continue winning momentum)

“This also caused the switches and circuit breaker to trip continuously in the pylon.”

The first of the three-match Twenty20 International series gets underway on Tuesday at the same venue and Dien was confident that the problem has been resolved. “We apologise to both the Proteas and Sri Lankan teams as well as to the general public who attended the match and who were viewing on television,” he said.