Cricket Australia has decided to retain Ashleigh Gardner as Australia women’s vice-captain, while adding safeguards around her role in selection discussions after her relationship with teammate Georgia Voll became public. CA chief executive Todd Greenberg said the board discussed Gardner’s position on Wednesday and remained “very supportive” of her leadership. CA has also updated its Respect at Work policy to address possible conflicts within the Australian team and protect a fair selection process.
“It was discussed yesterday at the board level,” Greenberg said. “The board asked for an update on it, which we provided, and the outcome of that is the board are very supportive of Ash in the role as she was appointed to the vice-captaincy, (there’s) huge and high regard for Ash.
“We’ve got a Respect at Work policy, (to) which we’ve now put some additional measures in place. Because we want to make sure that either the perception or the real conflict of selections – even though the vice-captain doesn’t have a say in selections in the team – the leadership role and the influence that person might have to put guard rails in about how the policy works. Outside of that, we’ve deemed it a personal matter.”
Greenberg confirmed that Gardner will step away from discussions involving Voll’s place in the squad or playing XI. This includes talks with selectors and captain Sophie Molineux. “That’s right. And we think that’s important. Even if there’s not a conflict, even if there’s a perceived level of conflict, not just from the outside, but from other team-mates or from staff.
“We’re in some difficult territory here because, like all sports, we’re all learning a little bit about how these high-performance environments can operate. So we want to be making sure that our policies are keeping up with the realities, and I think that’s exactly what we’ve done.”
Greenberg confirmed CA already knew about Gardner’s relationship with Voll before it became public. Gardner’s wife, Monica Wright, criticised the organisation for staying silent after the relationship became public and their marriage broke down. Wright also called for Gardner to lose her leadership role. CA has chosen to support Gardner as vice-captain while putting clear limits on her involvement in selection matters concerning Voll and keeping the process clear for everyone.
Gardner addressed the situation publicly on Thursday. “While my separation from my wife is a personal matter, I understand my current relationship status needed to be addressed by Cricket Australia given my position as vice-captain,” Gardner wrote on Instagram. “I am grateful that the CA Board has chosen to support my continued leadership. I look forward to playing a strong role as a leader and providing the best possible support for my teammates in the season to come.
“I am grateful for the time Monica and I shared and sorry for the pain this has caused. I wish her nothing but happiness and success in the future.
Gardner ended her statement by asking for privacy and making clear that she does not plan to speak further about the matter for now. “I won’t be making any further public comment on this matter at this time and ask that the privacy of those involved is respected.” CA had already confirmed it would back her leadership. The decision keeps selection discussions involving Voll separate from Gardner’s duties.
The changes address both a real conflict and the possible perception of one. Greenberg said CA wanted its policies to match high-performance sport. Gardner will continue her leadership role, but will not take part in relevant selection discussions. CA has treated the personal situation separately from the process, while Gardner has asked that everyone’s privacy be respected.
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