Johannesburg: Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) troubled T20 Global League has been postponed to 2018 in an embarrassing climb-down for the organisation which launched the tournament amid great fanfare in London in June.

Failure to secure a suitable broadcast package and a title sponsor meant CSA stood to lose about $25 million, representing roughly half of the organisation’s cash reserves.

‘We have not come to this decision lightly,’ acting CSA CEO Thabang Moroe said in a statement on Tuesday.

‘Having discussed it with all our stakeholders including the franchise owners, we believe that the interest of the league should be our first priority. We have re-assessed our strategy and believe that postponing the first edition of the T20 Global League to next year will serve us well.’

A number of top international players had been signed for the 2017 competition, including England one-day captain Eoin Morgan and former England batsman Kevin Pietersen.

The six-week tournament, due to feature eight teams, was scheduled to run from Nov. 3-Dec. 16.

Former CSA CEO Haroon Lorgat left his job suddenly last month citing a clash with the organisation’s board, widely reported in South African media to be about his role in setting up the T20 Global League.