The 20- and 50-over versions of the sport have taken over the global cricket calendar and all the signs are that is set to continue, as that’s where the money lies, experts say.



By NICK SAID



TEST CRICKET IS THE PUREST FORM OF THE sport and the ultimate examination of skill, but there are signs that the five-day game could soon become an afterthought in the annals of history as the limited overs formats take center-stage.



Faster and perhaps better suited to a broader television audience, which in turn appeals to sponsors and advertisers, the 20- and 50-over versions of the sport have taken over the global cricket calendar and all the signs are that is set to continue in the future.



It is less of an issue for the so-called ‘Big Three’ of the world game, India, England and Australia, but as money talks, the trio are likely to play more five-day cricket among themselves and leave the likes of South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies and even current test champions New Zealand out in the increasing cold.



By mid-2022, England had played 24 tests since the start of 2021 and India 19. South Africa had featured in just 12. This is not a snapshot in isolation, a look at the upcoming tours calendar over the next few years suggests this is a situation that will likely worsen.



In two of South Africa’s tests, against Bangladesh in April, they were without six first team players, including their entire first choice pace bowling attack, who had instead opted to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL).



And the reasons are not too difficult to understand.



Players can earn five to 10 times their annual Cricket South Africa contract for eight weeks’ work at the IPL. It is a no-brainer. And that is just one of the lucrative T20 leagues, there are many others.



And here-in lies the crux. The riches that have flowed into the shortest format in the last decade means young cricketers entering the game prioritize that format over test cricket.



We are headed towards a future where young players will look to play only the limited overs stuff and not bother with the first-class game.



“I’ve got a lot of friends where their young boys are just concerned with one day getting an IPL contract,” former South Africa test great Allan Donald tells FORBES AFRICA. “They talk about what it is like being in the IPL. I think the new generation of kids who genuinely love the game see big money and their future in white ball cricket.



“Even those young players now in first class cricket, you hear them talk about it being an opportunity to throw their name into the hat and get a contract at the IPL. You don’t hear them talking much about test cricket.



“There is no doubt about it, in general today’s young kids are driven to make a career out of limited overs cricket rather than tests. It is now a world where technique does not matter and it is just ‘see ball, hit ball’.”



Donald is one of the greatest fast bowlers to have played



the game and was a cornerstone of the South African side that were readmitted to the international game in 1991.



He is currently the bowling coach of Bangladesh but has worked around the world and has seen firsthand the changes in the modern game.



“For me, test cricket is still 100 percent the number one format,” he says. “For the other nations (outside of the Big Three), it is a major worry. It really is a concern for me that other teams are battling to play as much test cricket as the big guys.



“It is also a concern that South Africa are not running parallel with the big dogs in terms of the volume of test cricket that the country used to play. It has dipped significantly.



“But there is no question about it, after speaking to already established players, there are many who would simply rather play the shortened version of the game because that’s where the money lies.



“If I just take Bangladesh, our next test is in five months’ time. But our players should be playing a lot more to develop their skills and gain that experience against the top teams. But there is just so much white ball stuff happening around the world.”



South Africa’s former director of cricket Graeme Smith, the most successful captain in test history, has been beating this drum for some time now.



“I don’t think world cricket wants ( just) three nations competing against each other in 10 years’ time,” Smith says. “How does that benefit the game? It doesn’t. That will then amplify the (T20) leagues and they will just get bigger and bigger.”



In the first decade of the 21st century, South Africa played 108 tests. In the second it was 90. The third will not get near that unless there is a change in thinking.



The West Indies played 25 fewer tests in the second decade compared to the first.



“I’ve thought for a long time that we’re probably going to finish up with the eight major nations playing test cricket,” former Australia test great Ian Chappell told ‘ABC’ last year. “But even now I’m not so sure it’s going to come down to eight because it’s become a pretty expensive exercise and a lot of countries just don’t have the money.



“I’d like to see a fund set up and funded by (limited overs) cricket tournaments where the funds are set aside to help out countries who are struggling to keep going in test cricket.”



South Africa are slated to play eight tests over the next 15 months from August, though that is subject to change.



Three each in England and Australia, and two at home versus the West Indies.



It is not a lot to inspire a new generation.

Conceptual cricket shot

Is Test Cricket Dying? And Where Does That Leave African Players?

The Proteas have a reputation of dropping the ball at the
final moment. The team hope to make important changes as they prepare for the
Cricket World Cup.



South Africa’s search for what is becoming their ‘Holy
Grail’ will continue in May when they contest the Cricket World Cup that is to
be played in England and Wales, providing another shot at a trophy that has
frustratingly eluded them in the past.



The Proteas have entered World Cup tournaments as heavy
favorites in the past, indisputably the best team on the planet at the time,
yet found unusual ways to be eliminated, leading to the tag of ‘chokers’ that
has haunted the team for two decades now.



In 1999, they got themselves into a winning position against Australia in their semi-final, yet gave up their final wicket to a crazy run-out needing just a single run for victory.



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Four years later, on home soil, they misread the
Duckworth-Lewis par score after rain in a pool match against Sri Lanka and did
not realize they needed one more run than they had.



In 2007, they folded in the West Indies when too many of
their top players could not find form, while four years ago, they gave up a
commanding position to lose a semifinal to New Zealand, made all the more
galling as South African-born Grant Elliott proved the match-winner for the
Kiwis.



The failures of the side have almost become part of cricket
folklore, with opposing fans delighting in throwing the choker tag at South
Africa at every opportunity.



So what chance of a change in 2019? It is the first time in perhaps 27 years that South Africa do not go in as one of the genuine pre-tournament favorites, with England and India many people’s top tips, and with good reason as both have been outstanding in 50-over cricket of late.



An evolving South Africa could have as many as 10 players in
their 15-man squad who have never been to the World Cup before, and while that
lack of experience could be a hindrance, it could also be a help in that they
will not carry the ‘baggage’ of past failure. 



Captain Faf du Plessis will go to his third tournament and
he knows what to expect in terms of media and fan pressure over past failures
on his players.



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“As soon as you get to the tournament, you get to hear about
it,” Du Plessis tells FORBES AFRICA. 



“When you chat to the media that is all people want to talk
about, when you play against opposition, they will bring it up.



“For me now, it is about making players aware of it and
giving them ways to deal with it, to mentally preparing for it, so that when we
do get to England, it is not a surprise.”



Du Plessis believes that managing key moments in games
better than they have in the past is the key to success, as well as making sure
the players stick to their game-plans and don’t try to be ‘supermen’.



“For the last year or so we have been dealing with different
aspects of that. Hopefully, when we get there, we will manage those situations
better than we have previously.



“We have played some really good cricket at tournaments in
the past, but we have always had little moments in the game where pressure got
the better of us. 



“How do you fix that? How do you deal with it? How do you
cope in those moments?



“I hope that by talking to players, by giving them a ‘how’
of dealing with those moments, they will handle them better than we have in the
past.”



The make-up of the South African side has been the subject
of much debate, but the picture is clear for Du Plessis –&nbsp; if everybody is fit. Three fast-bowlers, a
spinner and seven batsmen, which includes an all-rounder, is the preferred
make-up, with the swinging ball likely to dominate the bat.



When all are available, the South African side generally
picks itself, but the return of fast bowler Lungi Ngidi from injury is key. 



“If you have a very good bowling attack that can get
wickets, then you put yourself there or thereabouts,” Du Plessis says. 



“India have got a really good bowling attack at the moment
and are bowling teams out constantly. 



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“If we have a full-strength team, we also have a very good bowling attack. We have missed Lungi recently. I feel that if you have Lungi, Dale [Steyn] and KG [Kagiso Rabada] together, it makes our bowling attack a lot stronger. 



“They are all wicket-takers and that is what winning in
white ball cricket is about.”



With Andile Phehlukwayo having moved ahead in the race for
the all-rounder spot and JP Duminy likely to return from injury in time for the
tournament, giving a -part-time spin option, South Africa’s&nbsp; first choice side looks strong.



But do Quinton de Kock, Hashim Amla, Reeza Hendricks, Du
Plessis, Duminy, David Miller, Phehlukwayo, Rabada, Steyn, Ngidi and Imran
Tahir have the look of world champions? Time will tell. 



The Proteas open their campaign against England at The Oval on May 30, with all 10 teams playing each in a round-robin format. The top four sides then advance to the semi-finals, with the decider to be played on July 14.



&#8211;Nick Said

cricket

Can The ‘Chokers’ Reclaim Glory

In a summer of cricket that produced many exciting new discoveries, the one with perhaps the most long-term potential is that of fast bowler Lungi Ngidi, who has overcome tough times to take his place in the country’s Test side.
Ngidi is potentially the long-term successor to Morne Morkel, who announced his retirement from the international game in February, and is likely to form a fearsome attacking duo with Kagiso Rabada in the coming years – both are able to clock speeds of 150 kilometers per hour.
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The 22-year-old is part of a new wave of black cricketers earning their stripes in South Africa’s national side, with the sport finally able tap into a segment of the population that had been excluded from the game for so long.
Aside from Rabada and Ngidi, Temba Bavuma and Andile Phehlukwayo have played Test cricket in the last year, while Khayelihle Zondo recently made his debut in the One Day International format, and Junior Dala and Aaron Phangiso played as well in the Twenty20 games against India in February.
It is a radical change from the days when Makhaya Ntini furrowed almost a lone career as South Africa’s only international black cricketer, joined ever so briefly in the national team by the likes of Monde Zondeki, Mfuneko Ngam and Thami Tsolekile.
Much needed transformation within the sport has had some role to play, but few would argue that all the recent recruits to the national side have not deserved their elevation and most grabbed the opportunity with both hands.
Ngidi, perhaps more than anyone, took advantage after he became an injury replacement for Dale Steyn in the second Test against India in Pretoria in January.
On a wicket more suited to spin bowling, he returned excellent match figures of 7/90, including the prized wicket of the best batsman in the world, Virat Kohli, with a vicious in-swinger that trapped the Indian captain leg before wicket.
It was not Ngidi’s first appearance in the national team; his promise was spotted 12 months earlier when he was selected for three Twenty20 clashes against touring Sri Lanka.
And he excelled there too, taking 4/19 in second match as the bounce extracted from his tall frame and good pace left the visitors hopping around the crease.
But a back injury immediately after that kept him out of the game for six months, and took him from an incredible high to a desperate low.
It was during that time that he struggled to keep his fitness levels at the required level, leading to some tough words at his franchise team, the Pretoria-based Titans.
“It was very difficult but it was worth it in the long run and a lot of credit must also go to the trainer and physiotherapist at the Titans for the work they did with me,” Ngidi told reporters.
“And the coach [Mark Boucher] as well – we had some hard but honest chats behind closed doors and that also helped me much in the long run.
“That was probably one of the biggest challenges of my career… coming from a high to a low in a short space of time. Being selected to play for South Africa and then getting injured, it was tough.”
&#8220;I thought I was doing all the right things but it was not going my way. During my time away from the game I got a lot of time to reflect and now I realize that I am actually stronger than I thought.”
Ngidi has his roots in Durban – his mother Bongi was a domestic worker and his father Jerome a caretaker at a local school. His life changed when he was selected for a scholarship to the prestigious Hilton College, a school known for producing international sportsmen in all codes.
“From a young age he was a natural talent, not just a cricketer, but a very talented rugby player and a swimmer,” Hilton College Executive House Master Sean Carlisle told FORBES AFRICA.
Aside from Carlisle, Ngidi was also under the tutelage of former Zimbabwe international all-rounder Neil Johnson, who had many years as a top professional.
“There was obviously lots of raw potential there at school level. He was probably a bit frustrated then as at school he suffered a lot of injuries, but the natural ability and the massive potential was clear for everybody to see,” says Carlisle.
“What was evident too is that he stood up in pressure situations. When things were tight in match situations, he came to the fore and that gave you an indication that he could handle bigger pressures later in life.”
Carlisle believes that it is Ngidi’s calm and grounded personality that will see him successful. He is not prone to flights of fancy or the belief that he does not have to work hard to achieve his goals.
“That is probably one of his greatest assets, that he is humble and down to earth. Right from the start, he was very grounded and really was one of those all-round, well-mannered and well-groomed guys. You could say he was, and is, a real good guy.”
Carlisle is rightly proud of his former pupil, even if he himself admits he is a little bit surprised at how well Ngidi has taken to international cricket.
“We have been following him and seeing how well he has done at Tuks [the University of Pretoria], and then in the Twenty20s. But to be honest, all of us are slightly taken aback at how quickly and how well he took to Test cricket.
“He is just an incredibly rounded, humble man and we could not be prouder. The cricket side is fantastic, but for me it is the human element that will make him special.”
With Morkel out the picture and the future of Steyn in serious doubt, Ngidi has the opportunity to lead South Africa’s pace attack with Rabada for the next decade or more if he can stay fit.
“I’m so proud of him, he’s already a role model for millions of South Africans,” Ngidi said of Rabada, just a year his senior. “I’d love to emulate his achievements one day but, for now, I’m just happy to be chasing him.”
&#8211; By Nick Said

CRICKET-RSA-AUS

The Speedster That Bounced Back

There was a time when the phrases ‘throw like a girl’ or ‘run like a girl’ were considered insults. These days, they’re not; especially not if you are a member of the South African women’s cricket team.
They are the only African side to have qualified for the Women’s World Cup, which is being played in England now. Their presence is a result of steady progression which has peaked over the last three years thanks to increased corporate backing and a more structured cricket program and could show the rest of the continent how rich the rewards of investing in women’s sport can be.
Four years ago, the South African women&#8217;s game was managed in much the same way as an amateur competition, where the main reward for involvement was enjoyment. Things started to change in early 2013. Financial institution Momentum had just bought the naming rights to the men&#8217;s one-day international squad and the domestic one-day cup and expressed an interest in extending their sponsorship to the women, a property that was not up for sale at the time.
“When we became involved in cricket sponsorship, it was with the intention of getting our brand out here but we also wanted to leave a legacy which showcased our values; things like diversity and gender equality,” says Danie van den Burgh, head of Momentum to FORBES WOMAN AFRICA.
“We saw an opportunity in women’s cricket and asked Cricket SA but they told us it was not something they were considering getting a sponsor for because they hadn’t had anyone interested. We wanted to get involved so we made them an offer and from there it just snowballed.”
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Momentum’s money made an immediate impact. Cricket SA could employ a full-time women’s coach, Hilton Moreeng, and awarded six players professional contracts. A year later that number was increased to 14, which meant that a full squad was being paid for their efforts. The effects on the field were immense.
In October 2014, the South African women’s team made their first trip to Sri Lanka – and crucial because that country would also host the World Cup qualifiers three years later – and won. Then, they traveled to India and the United Arab Emirates, notoriously difficult places for teams to tour, and won series against both India and Pakistan. Although the South African women could not repeat those feats at home in the full series against the powerhouses of England and West Indies, they made gains by beating both sides in a single match for the first time. Victories over Bangladesh, Ireland and Zimbabwe followed to confirm South Africa’s presence as one of the better sides in the women&#8217;s game and prepare them for what Moreeng hopes will be a successful World Cup.
<blockquote>“We are very excited and proud, especially when we look at where we came from and the amount of work we put in. From Momentum coming on board, to players becoming professional, the number of series we played, and the opportunities to play cricket against top teams in the world and test our skills,” he says.</blockquote>
“This team have been playing together for the last three years so the growth and the maturity of the squad is very good. Performances around the world have been very good. They are a team that travels well and can win away from home.”
England is a challenging destination for touring teams because of conditions. The ball swings early on but South Africa’s women have the resources to deal with that. The top-ranked bowler in the world, Marizanne Kapp, is in their squad, along with four other players who participated in a T20 tournament in the United Kingdom last year.
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Captain Dane van Niekerk, batsman Lizelle Lee and fast bowler Shabnim Ismail, all played for English teams in the Kia Super League – a monetized event similar to the Indian Premier League – last year. Accompanying them to the World Cup are youngsters like Laura Wolvaardt, an 18-year-old who already has a century to her name, and Raisibe Ntozakhe, an offspinner who made her debut in the series directly producing the World Cup and began playing cricket as a six-year-old with boys.
The balance of experience and youth and their common drive is what Van Niekerk hopes will set them apart. “We’ve got a purpose as a team and that’s to win a World Cup. It’s been a long and grueling process to get to this but we all bought into it,” she says.
Moreover, the team have plenty of people they want to impress, not least because they will receive an unprecedented level of coverage. All South Africa’s matches at the Women’s World Cup will be televised on pay channel SuperSport, a massive upsurge considering that the first time they ever appeared on a live broadcast was in 2014.
<blockquote>“It’s awesome to be able to share this with the country. It’s really special for our families because we can’t always get them to other countries so for them to be able to watch one of the biggest tournaments of our careers is really touching,” says Van Niekerk.</blockquote>
South Africa’s increased efforts in promoting the women’s game are a reflection of a changing global trend. At the macro-level, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has realized women’s sport deserves more attention and is providing it. Prize money for the Women&#8217;s World Cup has increased ten-fold from $200,000 in 2013 to $2 million this year.
“This is the first step towards greater parity and recognition. The change will not happen overnight but the women’s game is crucial to the global growth of cricket,” says ICC CEO Dave Richardson.
For Cricket SA’s general manager Corrie van Zyl, a massive monetary incentive like that could help convince more women to take up the game and to realize there’s great pride to be taken in throwing and running like a girl.
“It shows them that cricket can become a career,” he says. Touche! &#8211; Written by Firdose Moonda

On A Good Wicket Now

With his office behind Newlands cricket ground, in Cape Town, it might not surprise many that Mustaq Brey will be one of two South Africans to own a team in the T20 Global League that will launch later this year.
Brey, a self-taught chartered accountant, <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/cover-story/2015/03/01/mandela-billions-vultures-came/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">is one of the three Founders of Brimstone Investment Corporation</a>, and was on the cover of Forbes Africa in March, 2015.
Brey, along with Fred Robertson and Lawrie Brozin, took $840,000 from working people and turned it into $628 million.
After 20 years of investment, Brimstone has some of the biggest names as associates, including Life Healthcare, Oceana, Sea Harvest, Lion of Africa Insurance, Tiger Brands and Grindrod Limited.
Now, Brey can add the Stellenbosch franchise of the upcoming <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2017-06-19-explainer-what-is-cricket-south-africas-t20-global-league/#.WUkMNPmGPIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">T20 Global League</a> to that list. It&#8217;s apt that the marquee player assigned to Brey&#8217;s team is South Africa&#8217;s T20 captain, Faf du Plessis.
The second South African owner is Osman Osman, the Managing Director at BluBlood &#8211; a promotions and talent buying company. He will get the Pretoria franchise. His marquee player is <a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2017/05/31/ab-de-villiers-uses-app-connect-fans/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AB de Villiers</a>.
<blockquote>&#8220;This is a huge opportunity for South Africa, in terms of the exposure that we are going to be getting globally from a tournament of this magnitude.  The influx of tourists and highlighting the magnificence of South Africa, it is something that every South African can be proud of and benefit from,” says Osman.</blockquote>
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/sport/2017/06/01/in-pursuit-of-gold/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AB de Villiers In Pursuit Of Gold</a>
Another notable owner of one of the teams is Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan. He is a co-owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the <a href="http://www.iplt20.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IPL</a>, India&#8217;s lucrative tournament that has inspired the T20 Global League.
Cricket South Africa, the sport&#8217;s national body, hopes the league will bring in a lot of money and also prevent local players going overseas to earn more money. The Proteas recently lost two of its most talented players, Kyle Abbott and Rilee Rossouw, to so-called <a href="http://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/story/1075718.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kolpak contracts</a>.
Fixtures are yet to be determined, but the tournament gets underway in November.
Global T20 host cities, owners and marquee players:
Durban &#8211; Fawad Rana, Hashim Amla
Benoni &#8211; Javed Afridi, Quinton de Kock
Pretoria &#8211; Osman Osman (SA), AB de Villiers
Stellenbosch &#8211; Mustaq Brey (SA), Faf du Plessis
Cape Town &#8211; Shah Rukh Khan, JP Duminy
Bloemfontein &#8211; Sushil Kumar, David Miller
Johannesburg &#8211; GMR Group. Kagiso Rabada
Port Elizabeth &#8211; Ajay Sethi, Imran Tahir
&nbsp;

Forbes Africa cover revealed as owner of new T20 Global League team

You would be hard-pressed to find a cricketer who does not see the five-day format as the ultimate test of skill in the game, but despite this status it is also beginning to lose its luster to the high-octane, and high-money stakes, of limited overs cricket.
AB de Villiers’ decision to ditch the longer format, for now, in search of limited overs glory says much about where his priorities lie. He has other career objectives away from Test cricket, which is fair enough, but where players previously did everything possible to play the longest format of the game, that is now palpably no longer the case in many parts of the world.
Challenges to Test cricket are not new; there was a time when One-Day Internationals (ODIs) were thought of as the future of the game, before its smaller cousin, Twenty20 cricket, was born and has now placed the 50-over format under threat.
In our pursuit of cramming more action into a shorter period of time, as attention-spans wane and we have ever more entertainment buzzing about to distract us, five days of cricket can seem just too long, for players and fans.
And therein lies the danger for Tests, even as the ‘purest’ form of the game. It is a format that is fighting to hold attention as we are bombarded with more convenient entertainment choices.
And it is not just the fans who feel that way. De Villiers earlier this year became the latest cricketer to put a halt to his Test career in favor of the shorter formats.
<div id="attachment_31459" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-31459" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-31459 size-large" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506413576-1024x727.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="727" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506413576.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506413576-300x213.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506413576-600x426.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506413576-768x545.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />AB de Villiers of South Africa walks off at close of play during day two of the 4th Test at Supersport Park on January 23, 2016 in Centurion, South Africa. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)</div>
Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, MS Dhoni, Dwayne Bravo, to name just a few, are other big-name players who quit Tests to concentrate on the shorter format and they continue to feature in lucrative leagues around the world.
Gayle was earning $100,000 per year playing for the West Indies when he retired from Test cricket in 2014. It is estimated, as no official figure exists, that he earns up to $3.5 million per annum playing the Twenty20 circuit that these days includes the Indian Premier League (IPL), as well as tournaments in Australia, England, Pakistan (hosted in the UAE), West Indies and Bangladesh, as well as a new competition to be staged in South Africa this November and December, for which Gayle is a marquee player.
Much more money for much less work, less strain on the body and less time away from home sounds like a no-brainer and as precedents continue to be set, the genuine fear is that Test cricket may battle even more to hold onto the game’s star names in the future.
De Villiers was paid $1.1 million for playing in the IPL in 2017, and he can look forward to more of that in the future if he can stay fit.
Is it worth it for him to risk another serious injury like the elbow problem that kept him out of the game for seven months in the second half of last year and put that income in jeopardy?
We can stand on our perches and suggest allegiance to the country’s flag should come first, but that is unrealistic with the amount of money floating about the Twenty20 circuit, and possibly unfair on De Villiers.
The swashbuckling batsman says he will be back for the home Tests against India and Australia in the 2017/18 season, but cynics have suggested that has more to do with his commercial obligations than any real desire to keep playing the five-day format.
That is also perhaps harsh. De Villiers has stated openly that beating Australia in a home Test series, something South Africa have failed to do since 1970, remains a career goal, though perhaps not one at the top of the list.
Whether he does return or not, De Villiers has now entered a stage of his career where he can cherry-pick his assignments based on financial considerations and career goals.
Test cricket has become, for him, too hard on the body, too much time away from family and, it would appear, too much hassle. The lure of a potential Test century at Lord’s, which might have captivated him as a youngster, is simply no longer there. And he makes no bones about it.
But there is a goal that De Villiers does still have that appears to have consumed him – winning the 50-over World Cup in 2019.
De Villiers took the semifinal defeat to New Zealand in 2015 hard and while his legacy as one of South Africa’s greatest ever cricketers is secure, to bow out by lifting the trophy in England in two years’ time would be the defining moment of his incredible career given the disappointments South Africa have endured in the competition in the past.
“Over the last few years something has come to mind, which is the fact that we haven’t won a World Cup yet. And for me to make it to the 2019 World Cup, I can’t really be serious in every format,” De Villiers admitted earlier this year.
“I’m definitely not retiring from Test cricket because I have plans to come back at some stage. For me, for now the most important thing is the 2019 World Cup. I want to make sure we get there. I want to make sure we lift that trophy.”
“Obviously there are other factors that play a role, like family and time away from home, but the main reason for me is that World Cup and I feel that if I play all formats all the time, then mentally and physically I won’t be at my best.”
<div id="attachment_31458" style="width: 669px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-31458" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-31458 size-large" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506228672-deep-etch-659x1024.jpg" alt="" width="659" height="1024" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506228672-deep-etch.jpg 659w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506228672-deep-etch-300x466.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506228672-deep-etch-600x932.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506228672-deep-etch-193x300.jpg 193w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GettyImages-506228672-deep-etch-768x1194.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 659px) 100vw, 659px" />AB de Villiers of South Africa walks off after Stuart Broad of England took his wicket during day one of the 4th Test at Supersport Park on January 22, 2016 in Centurion, South Africa. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)</div>
That World Cup is the reason why South Africa’s, and De Villiers’, participation in the ICC Champions Trophy in England this June is so important.
Even two years out, it is the perfect preparation for the South African side to hone their game-plan in those almost unique English conditions, for the bowlers to learn their line and lengths, and for the batsmen to be able to counter prodigious English swing.
The South African ODI side is unlikely to change much between now and the World Cup, injuries aside, and so it is a dry run as they meet the sub-continent trio of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in their first round pool phase that starts with a match against the latter on June 3.
But having given up Tests to follow his dream of the World Cup, there is perhaps now even more pressure on De Villiers to perform and lead from the front. He has put his eggs in the ODI basket and South Africa will expect a return.
“It’s not easy for me. I have always been the go-ahead guy, the team man who never wants to miss a game for South Africa. But [with] the schedules these days, it’s really tough to play all formats, especially at the age of 32, when most cricketers don’t go past the age of 35.”
“If you do the math, it takes to me to 2019, 2020 at the most. Hopefully by then I will still be fit and be there to lift the trophy with the boys.”
De Villiers has royally entertained in his career, has played a major role in Test series wins in England and Australia, and generally been a superb advert for South African cricket.
Maybe he has earned the right to prolong his career in the way he sees fit.

CRICKET-SRI-RSA

In Pursuit Of Gold

South African cricket legend Makhaya Ntini believes racial quotas in the country’s cricket are “long overdue” and hopes to play the mentor’s role for up-and-coming black players to ease their transition into the international game.
Known as ‘The Mdingi Express’, Ntini was one of the finest fast bowlers of his generation, taking 390 test wickets in 101 matches, behind only Shaun Pollock (421) and Dale Steyn (416 and counting) on South Africa’s all-time list.
But now in a new phase of his life post-retirement, he is searching for ways to give back to the game and feels he has an almost unique role that he can play in the complex South African fold.
“I have always seen cricket as a fun game, something to be enjoyed before anything else,” Ntini tells FORBES AFRICA from Harare, where he has been helping Zimbabwe Cricket as acting coach of their senior national team.
“But it has also become an opportunity for young rural boys like myself to build a career and create opportunities for themselves that they might not find elsewhere. That is something we must take very seriously.”
<div id="attachment_5442" style="width: 213px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-5442" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-medium wp-image-5442" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/000_Par3701327-203x300.jpg" alt="" width="203" height="300" />South African cricketer Makhaya Ntini gestures after the Twenty20 match between India and South Africa at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on January 9, 2011. The match marked the last international appearance of South African fast bowler Ntini, who got a rousing reception from a crowd of about 47,000 but conceded 46 runs off four overs without taking a wicket. AFP PHOTO / ALEXANDER JOE / AFP PHOTO / ALEXANDER JOE</div>
“I used to play Baker’s Mini-Cricket as a boy because it was something new, we never knew the game before it was introduced into the rural areas by [former Cricket South Africa president] Ali Bacher and [administrator] Khaya Majola.”
“The sport was not played in school; we had no television to see it. It was not a game that was part of us. But when given the opportunity to play, it was new, it was exciting.
“There were a few role-models that we could really look up to though. Omar Henry was there when we returned to international cricket in 1991, and he was a wonderful player. Obviously there were wonderful cricketers out there playing, but we did not get to see them.”
Ntini says he feels that had official quotas been introduced at the time he was starting out with the national team, the Proteas would have had a wider pool of players to choose from and been stronger for it.
Cricket South Africa (CSA) has recently announced that an average minimum of six black players, of which two must be black African, will be selected for matches across all three formats of the game over a season.
This is in keeping with a decision years ago to enforce the same quotas at provincial level.
“From my take, it has been long overdue,” says Ntini. “If it had happened at the time of myself, Monde Zondeki, Victor Mpitsang, Garnett Kruger, Geoffrey Toyana, our cricket would have never have gone through the troubles it has.”
“The talent was there, but the quotas were only in the schools and provincial sides.”
“The likes of myself, Herschelle Gibbs, Ashwell Prince and Paul Adams – we had to work harder than anybody else to get recognized. We had to perform in every game to stick around [in the team].”
“We could not have a ‘bad day in the office’ like many other players or suddenly we would be under big pressure. We were looked at in a very different way.”
“I had to wait four years to play in England. I kept being told by [former captain] Hansie Cronje and [ex-coach] Bob Woolmer, ‘you are on a learning curve, you must wait for your chance’.”
“It seemed impossible that I could take the place of an Allan Donald, Jacques Kallis, Brian McMillan, Shaun Pollock or Lance Klusener. These were great players, but I think if I was born seven years later I would have achieved a lot more in the game.”
“Because of that I think we had a responsibility to perform. We had a responsibility in how we trained, how we played, how we gathered ourselves off the field. We needed to make sure that when we went on that field, we had the tools to give our best.”
No-one in their right mind would suggest that new young firebrand fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has benefitted from the recently introduced quota system, he has let his prodigious talent do the talking. The son of a doctor and schooled at the prestigious St Stithians College, Rabada did not have any of the early disadvantages that Ntini endured as a young boy.
But the latter insists he still needs to be mentored and guided along the way.
“He has chosen a narrow road as a career, but he has a wonderful family around him to ensure he does not get big-headed and to offer guidance. He keeps himself grounded,” says Ntini.
“But I can see he is hungry to achieve more than what I did and is not satisfied with what he has done already. He looks as though he is challenging himself all the time.”
But Ntini cautions that international sport is an unforgiving place and says he will always be a sympathetic shoulder for Rabada or any other cricketers making their way in the game, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
“Sometimes they need people to sit them down and talk to them as brothers,” Ntini says. “I have realized that we lack that in our coaches. They can teach everything about cricket, but our brothers do not have someone that they can easily open up to with their struggles off the pitch.”
“I feel like I can offer advice, because these things can have a major impact on your career. We have coaches to teach cricket, but when the player is off the pitch and in his hotel room, they don’t have people to knock on the door to see how they are doing.”
“Can I open up to an [captain] AB de Villiers as a black cricketer and say, ‘I am struggling with this or that, my girlfriend has just left me, I am going through a divorce’, things like that which have a huge impact on a person?”
“AB will not be able to guide them, I don’t think, but I feel like I can be that person with all that I have been through. If I had the opportunity to be involved on that level, I would jump at it because I see it as a way of giving back to the game and to South African cricket.”
Ntini says he has enjoyed his stint with Zimbabwe Cricket, even if the side did receive some criticism during his tenure for crushing losses to India and New Zealand.
It is, perhaps, unfair to lay the blame for those defeats at the door of Ntini given how little cricket the Zimbabwe national teams plays. Whatever the result, he continues to flash his trademark smile.
“Enjoyment is an understatement, I am loving it [coaching],” he says. “I put my whole heart into it. Look at Zimbabwe cricket and cricketers, how much they have changed from where they were since I got here.”
“They tend to enjoy themselves now, they open up to us, they have the freedom of being able to be you, not the restriction of trying to impress me.”
But he says his heart remains in South Africa and if the right opportunity came to return home, he would jump at it.
“South Africa is my country, I will never run away,” he says.

The Role Model Waiting For A Role

On a warm Thursday afternoon, at the Wanderers cricket grounds in Johannesburg, he looks like a high school fan seeking autographs.
Look again; this is Temba Bavuma, a history-maker with a quick eye and a broad bat. The 5.47-foot tall cricketer was the first black South African to score a century in a test match.
Where he made history is part of his story. The century came at one of the most pristine cricket grounds in the world, watched by some of the richest people in Africa at Newlands in Cape Town. Bavuma looked like he was born there; he wasn’t. He was born just 10 kilometers away, in the impoverished Langa township. Two worlds that could hardly be further apart.
On the walls of Langa, the heroes of the streets are celebrated in paintings. Bavuma is up there among the likes of South African music icon Brenda Fassie, sporting heroes Thabo Mngomeni and Thami Tsolekile.
“Inspiring the kids is important because they need to see that there is a brighter future outside the streets of Kwa-Langa,” says Bavuma.
The 26-year-old batsman says in achieving his maiden test century in January, there was no greater feeling than being recognized  by the youth in his township and the young children running up to him, seeking batting advice.
“Life has changed quite significantly since my milestone at Newlands. I spent a couple of days back home at Kwa-Langa and not only the elderly, but the youngsters were really proud of what I had done. The media also was flocking [after] me afterwards,” says Bavuma.
As he speaks, it is clear that the young batsman has his head firmly on his shoulders despite all the media hype.
Bavuma came from a family of sportsmen; inspiration came from his uncles. As a boy he would attend their cricket matches. His sports journalist father also loves the sport.
Bavuma’s talent was already evident in his early years at one of the oldest schools in South Africa, the South African College Junior School. When the family moved to Johannesburg, because of his father’s career, Bavuma would consolidate his cricketing career even further at St David’s Marist Inanda.
Now, he is one of a new generation of sought-after black cricketers that teams are prepared to pay top dollar for.
“Naturally you’ll find that franchises are going to end up paying more for your black African players because they need to field a certain number. It’s like in any market, you have bread and you have milk. Milk might cost more than bread and there’s a reason that milk costs more, maybe there’s a bit more demand for milk you know,” says Bavuma.
“I never actually saw myself competing with a fellow African brother or a black guy, I saw myself competing for six spots with all the other guys batting. That’s helped me to keep me much more motivated and to feed my competitive edge.”
Apart from the financial benefits he gets for being a black African cricketer, Bavuma says he has never experienced any form of racism from his teammates. He says he was welcomed warmly at the Proteas camp and he feels a part of a brotherhood. Bavuma notes, though, that he did receive some chirping on the pitch from English all-rounder Ben Stokes during the test series.
“He walked up to me while I was on the crease and he basically told me that I didn’t belong in the team. I guess chirping is part of the game,” says Bavuma.
The significant impact Bavuma’s 102 not out could have on children, especially to the majority of South Africa’s population was not lost on the young man who had grown up in the township.
“When I made my debut, I came to be a bit more aware of the significance behind it. It’s not just me making my debut for South Africa but it’s being a role model and inspiration for other kids, black African kids in particular. So this milestone solidifies this achievement,” says Bavuma.
Powerful words from a small man, with a big heart, born and bred in Langa.

Langa’s Little Big Man

Michael Holding stands tall, confident and imposing as he emerges from the commentary box hidden in the grandstands above SuperSport Park, in Centurion, near Pretoria. He looks more boardroom than boundary in his black suit and red tie; he’s still fit and lithe. You could easily imagine the six-foot-two giant tearing to the wicket and sending a rocket past your nose.
This is the youthful looking 60-year-old, with his silky smooth Caribbean accent, they call Whispering Death. A dramatic epithet that stuck around a lot longer than most of the batsmen he bowled to from Lord’s to Lahore. It sprang from an observation from umpire Dickie Bird that you could never hear the light-footed Holding as he ran to the wicket.
Holding was a lethal weapon for the West Indies, once the world’s most feared team that never lost a test series, home or away, for 13 years. In his pomp, Holding was one of the fastest and meanest.
On this trip to Africa, Holding is as passionate and fiery as ever as he holds forth from the commentary box. Sadly the team he bowled for with pride is not so fiery. Holding worries the future is even grimmer.
“We had four cricket teams at the school when I played at Kingston. Now at the same school, we have one team. It’s just a senior team and you struggle to find eleven people that want to play cricket. I was asked to help out with the coaching on one occasion about five years ago. When I went and saw the guys that were turning out to practice, I was shocked.  Sometimes at practice when you expect lots of people trying to make the final eleven, we were trying to find eleven people,” he says.
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-3441" src="/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/134646992-300x220.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="220" />
With three formats of the game; tests, one day internationals (ODIs) and twenty20s (T20s), Holding believes players are overwhelmed and overworked.
“I’ve been saying it for many many years; there is too much cricket being played. When you think of the volume of cricket each country is playing; the fact that they have got to think about rotating players, especially the fast bowlers, and picking so many different teams in so many different formats of the game, I am not too sure if the game itself is benefiting,” he says.
Many sides, without huge budgets, like the West Indies, can’t afford test cricket. Instead they focus on the lucrative shorter formats – ODIs and T20s – which are less gruelling than the five-day tests. The shift also means larger pay cheques for players.
“Test cricket is supposed to be the highest form of the game and you are not seeing that among other countries. Again you are not seeing that among countries because of the fact that there is so much cricket being played and so much time being afforded to other formats of the game instead of test cricket,” he says.
As South Africa, the best test team in the world, squares off with a former best team in the world, the view from the stands is grim. On this December day in Centurion, the stands are as empty as the practice nets were at Kingston in Jamaica.
“The mere fact that people are watching less test cricket now as before means the finances are not there for test cricket. They are certainly there for the shorter format. You see much more people turning up for the shorter games. Television companies tend to pay a lot more for the shorter format. So there is a lot more money coming in through that format,” says Holding.
“I was here for the Australia test series in South Africa. I thought it was going to be a grand series and it turned out to be a pretty good series – too short in my opinion. But I expected to see full stands; I expected the grounds to be sold out every day with the standard of cricket that was expected to be played and the standard that was played. And it wasn’t. The atmosphere was not what I expected to see.”
As a fast bowler, a Twenty20 match – which is four hours long – is too quick even for him.
“Everyone knows I am not a fan of Twenty20. They call it cricket, I don’t. That is why I just say Twenty20&#8230; I don’t blame any of the players at all for dedicating so much time to it. Cricket sportsmen do, in particular, have very short shelf lives. If someone is giving you a lot of money to do something that’s not very difficult, you’re going to take that money and make sure when you get to the age you have to retire you have a sound foundation. I don’t blame any cricketer at all for playing it. The people I blame are the administrators. They don’t play the game. Their sole job is to administer the game and look after the game and they are not doing a very good job of it,” he says.
It’s a sign of the times that many of the West Indies big hitters made themselves available only for the shorter format game against South Africa. It’s not the only time test cricket has suffered. In October, West Indies players walked out on their test series in India over a pay dispute.
“This is not the best West Indies team available, but a lot of things have passed under the bridge in regards to availability of cricketers. We hear people talk about being available for the shorter format of the game and not the longer game but that’s just the trends and the way it’s structured. [West Indies] will play a lot better at the shorter format of the game, if Chris Gayle and Darren Bravo and Kieron Pollard are available for the World Cup. Someone mentioned that they were winners of the Twenty20 World Cup not too long ago. That is a form of the game the West Indies are doing a lot better at. That’s a form of the game that the poorer countries are doing better in,” he says.
Change could be in the Caribbean breeze. The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) led by Clive Lloyd, former captain and World Cup winner, is trying to turn cricket around, says Holding.
Holding hopes that offering salaries for the first time to first class level players will help to entice more. The large sums of money on offer from the emergence of World Series Cricket was the spur for Holding to dump a career in computer programming at university and focus on his cricket, he says.
“A lot of things need to come with that. You need proper facilities. You need to make sure kids want to play it at school. You need to make sure they are developed when they get into the first class level, otherwise you are having all mediocrity. There is no point in paying nine mediocre cricketers to play. You won’t improve the standard of cricket just by paying them. It doesn’t work that way. You need to make sure the infrastructure is there to move one level to the next to get to first class level, otherwise there is no point,” says Holding.
“I played a lot of cricket as a kid. When I was ten years old, I played my first cricket match. The structure we had in the Caribbean then, and in Jamaica in particular, was very good. You could move though into those higher levels.”
There was a time batsmen prayed not to face the fire of the West Indies. In the 21st century it is a sad fact the West Indies pray for their stars Gayle, Bravo and Pollard to deign to play.
These days, Holding lives far from cricket in Miami in South Florida. He dearly wants to see his team return to greatness. He stares longingly over the African horizon at the thought.

Whispering Death On Dying Cricket

The cricket ball made fast bowler Mfuneko Ngam a star. The first time he got hold of one, he was in short trousers and was not allowed to bowl with it. The future South African bowling sensation used to retrieve balls for seniors in the nets at Motherwell Cricket Club, near Port Elizabeth, one of the many township clubs in the country’s cricket mad Eastern Cape.
Ngam served a tough apprenticeship in the gentleman’s game. From the age of seven, he was out in the townships on rough ground, with a tennis ball, trying to dismiss batsmen leg before oil drum.
<div id="attachment_2495" style="width: 211px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-2495" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-medium wp-image-2495" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/TL_508959-201x300.jpg" alt="" width="201" height="300" />PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA &#8211; 28 October 2004, Mfuneko Ngam during the Supersport match between Titans and Dolphins at Supersport Pack in Pretoria, South Africa. Photo Credit : © Lee Warren Gallo Images</div>
At Christmas, he would represent his village, near Middledrift, in the annual five-day tournament in King William’s Town. The competition was tough and the prize was half a sheep. This was also where South African fast bowling great Makhaya Ntini delivered his first bouncer.
Many saw Ngam as the next Ntini and in many ways he was. He made the South African team at the age of 21 and took 11 wickets in three test matches. Ngam had big shoes to fill when he replaced his role model, Allan Donald, who was sidelined by injury. Donald was the world’s leading fast bowler at the time.
A young Ngam had the ability to swing the ball at searing pace and took three wickets for just 26 runs against Sri Lanka, on his debut, in 2001. In the same year, Ngam was voted the national cricketer of the year, the first black player to earn the honor.
Ngam may have overcome humble beginnings, but he could not beat the injuries that snuffed out his career in 2006. Now, he runs his own cricket school in Port Elizabeth and works for Cricket South Africa (CSA) as a coach at the University of Fort Hare in the Eastern Cape.
“The project is a feeder to the Border and Eastern Province cricket unions. Since we started we have seen at least nine players contracted to the teams,” he says.
Softly-spoken Ngam, whose voice belies his nickname, Black Thunder, lived a short fairy tale followed by a rapid fall into obscurity. Does he feel the system has failed talented young black cricketers like him?
“I don’t think the system failed me as a cricketer, I had a choice to continue playing or become a coach. I opted for the latter because I felt obliged to plough back where I come from,” says Ngam.
“After I quit playing, I observed things were not looking right with development; hence I decided to play my role in the development of players from underprivileged communities. Initially I was critical of Cricket South Africa,” he says.
Ntini, known as the Mdingi Express, was the first black cricketer to play for South Africa. He does not think CSA is doing enough.
Upon retirement in 2010, Ntini tried to open a cricket school at an estimated cost of $2 million. Old Mutual helped Ntini draw up a plan, but the money did not materialize.
“That’s my frustration with cricket in South Africa. Every day, I cry my lungs out to every department for the support of my academy but no-one seems to care or to listen,” says Ntini.
So far, Ntini managed to raise a mere $1,900 for the school.
Ngam agrees, grassroots cricket in South Africa is not where it should be, but he acknowledges attempts to improve the situation.
“For cricket to be a success in the country, we need all parties involved to work diligently. This is a battle CSA cannot achieve alone. Teachers and coaches, as agents of the game, have to rise to the occasion,” says Ngam.
“We are still going to struggle as black people to break into professional cricket if things continue like this. I am still struggling with my cricket academy plan, but I am not going to get discouraged. I am hoping someone will come up and fund the project,” says Ntini.
“God will punish me if I don’t do anything to develop cricket because I had been helped to get where I am. God will say, ‘You have forsaken your call to help others,’” he says.
The sport’s governing body in South Africa, CSA, is struggling to correct the imbalances of the past.
“I understand the frustration of Ntini and Ngam that we are not quick enough in responding to many challenges in the sport. It is a moral right to give people fair opportunities. But the playing field is not equal because of our political past,” says Corrie van Zyl, CSA’s general manager and the manager of the High Performance Centre.
Van Zyl, a former national bowler and coach, says they have plans to involve Ntini as a high performance consultant in the Eastern Cape. They already have Edward Khoza as a development consultant at the Northern Cricket Union, which caters for northern parts of South Africa.
“It is a no brainer that we need the services of Makhaya in our high performance program. He proved himself to be the most popular across racial lines and was the best cricketer in his day. We are looking at how we can partner with our associates in assisting Makhaya’s indoor center getting off the ground. On our side there’s willingness to assist a guy like him,” says van Zyl.
CSA’s Talent Acceleration Programme (Tap) was established in 2006 to turn teenagers into professionals. The program targets excelling under-17s and 19s.
“Since its inception, this program delivered players like Wayne Parnell, Reeza Hendricks, Mangaliso Mosehle, Rilee Rossouw, Marchant de Lange, Jonathan Vandiar,” says Altaaf Kazi, CSA’s public relations and communications manager.
Van Zyl says they are spending $9.6 million a year getting more than two million youngsters to play the game.
“Research was conducted because there are a lot of black cricket players in the schools but we didn’t understand how they got lost in the system,” says van Zyl.
“A mistake we have done is we have not been telling the good stories about what is happening on the development front. It is unbelievable what is happening at Fort Hare. The world should know about the progress we are making there. We are building on it. The University of Johannesburg is next in line and then Limpopo province.”
Van Zyl admits, despite these programs, the look of the national team is worrying. Whites dominate with 17 players in the squad, while there are nine colored players, two blacks and two Indians.
South Africa may currently have the best team in the world but it has yet to reach the end of the great rainbow debate.

God Will Punish Me  If I Don’t Help Cricket

It only took South Africa’s cricket team 20 years to become the top-ranked Test side in the world. Two decades—that was all—and do not let anyone tell you differently.
They will try. They will say that South Africa, along with England and Australia, were one of first teams to first contest the sport at the highest level more than 120 years ago. They would be only partially correct. The South Africa that played cricket on the international stage until 1970 represented merely white South Africa.
The rest, and there was a rest, were ignored. Thousands of hopefuls from Indian, colored and black communities had to make do with sub-standard facilities as they formed their own competition. The late Basil D’Oliveira was one of them. A sensation on the matting wickets in Cape Town, D’Oliveira had to emigrate to England—with the help of money collected by his friends and teammates—to stand a chance of playing first-class cricket. He played in the lower leagues in Lancashire and county cricket for Worcestershire to qualify for his adopted country. After a sensational 158 against the Australians, in 1968, he was selected to tour South Africa with England, a dream return. It was not to be as South Africa cancelled the tour in protest, which proved to be a pyrrhic victory, as it led to apartheid regime’s isolation from world sport.
All of these marginalized cricketers, who would have loved to watch D’Oliveira in his prime on the turf of the land of his birth, kept playing on rough pitches, despite knowing they would never have the chance to represent their country. They kept cricket alive to ensure talents like Hashim Amla and Vernon Philander could make it in the future.
In 1991, when South Africa was readmitted to international cricket, with a tour to India, amid a fanfare of publicity and a meeting with Mother Teresa; Amla and Philander were nine and seven years old respectively. Previously, people of their skin color would have had no chance of being picked for South Africa. The team they saw walk onto the field at Eden Gardens in Kolkata would not have done much for their hopes of change. It was an all-white team, as it had been in the 28 years before.
Slowly, too slowly some would say, the faces of South African cricket did change. Still, it is not perfect in its representation of the country. Its greatest failing is that the team who wrested the number one Test ranking from England in August did not include a single black cricketer. But it did contain both Amla and Philander, who were the two chief reasons Graeme Smith was able to wrap his fingers around the mace given to the best team in the world.
Amla’s triple-hundred in the first match was the overwhelming reason South Africa assumed total control and emerged victorious at the Oval. Philander’s five-wicket haul, on the final afternoon of the third Test at Lord’s, sealed the historic achievement.
In the immediate aftermath, euphoria made it too easy to forget all that South African sport had been through. For generations it was used as a divisive tool, to elevate the few and exclude the rest. The South Africa of 2012 is bridging the gap. Eight of the 16 members of the squad were of color, five played in the team in all three matches and all of them put in telling performances.
Alviro Petersen scored 182 in the second match, an influential innings of grit and grind, that its magnitude cannot emphasize enough. JP Duminy held the lower order together, twice at Lord’s, and Imran Tahir, although spoken of as the weakest link, took wickets at crucial times to open England up. On the sidelines, fast bowler Lonwabo Tsotsobe picked up a yard of pace and performed well in the practice matches.
<div id="attachment_1330" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1330" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-medium wp-image-1330" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/000_Hkg7093550-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />Head Coach of South Africa Gary Kirsten looks on before the start of day one of the third and final five day international cricket test match between New Zealand and South Africa at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on March 23, 2012. AFP PHOTO/MARTY MELVILLE</div>
Almost everyone in the team weighed in with performances. Smith and Jacques Kallis’ centuries in the first match, along with Dale Steyn’s fiery five wickets, hammered home South Africa’s authority. Morné Morkel’s continued improvement paid off as he showed greater control than before and AB de Villiers took on the extra job of wicket-keeping as if he was born to do it.
The team went as well together as red meat and a fine South African Pinotage. There is a difference between that and a collection of people in the same clothes with a similar goal, which is what South Africa were before they conquered England.
Like so much of the rest of the continent, they were always thought to have great potential and routinely fell short of fulfilling that. What tripped them up was never their skill on the field, it was what went on off it. A baby in modern cricket, South Africa had a lot of development to make in a short space of time. With the demons of the mind, formed by insecurities and an inability to win a World Cup, that was tough to do.
It took someone with creativity and a unique approach to man management to flick the switch. Gary Kirsten, who played for South Africa soon after their comeback and also coached India, was that man. He introduced ideas that would normally be laughed out of cricket circles, such as regular interaction with explorer, Mike Horn, to give the team an extra edge.
It also gave them the freedom to operate as individuals and to allow their personalities to come through. Kirsten, perhaps completely unknowingly, created the perfect space for someone of any background to feel important. In that environment both those who had always been part of the elite and those that had not were able to flourish. And that is the secret to South Africa’s current success.

Why Africa Bestrides The World Like A Colossus

It was not that long ago when South Africa’s most celebrated cricketer, Jacques Kallis, could not be persuaded to do much more than show off his superior ability with bat and ball. Always a reluctant leader, he did not want that responsibility. Kallis typified the South African cricketer: self-absorbed with his own excellence above all.
If someone had said then that Kallis would make a goon of himself in front of his teammates, at a fancy dress function, people would not believe it—on South Africa’s tour to England, that is exactly what Kallis did. For an improvisation theater session—the brainchild of South Africa’s performance director, Paddy Upton—Kallis chose to dress up as a hotdog. He was the star act of the night. The team man had emerged.
The progress of Kallis is a small, but telling, example of the progress South African cricketers have made in their bid to dominate world cricket. The team has usually bubbled under when it comes to taking the top spot. True, it has maintained a steady hold of the number two position in test cricket and is usually a World Cup favorite, which bows out when it gets tough. This year the team believed it was time to scale the summit and stay there.
South Africa’s change in form can be traced back to the series win in England in 2008. Although the team had been successful away from home before, that victory was a major breakthrough because it was the first since readmission in 1991. Furthermore, it was achieved against an in-form England side on territory considered tough to conquer.
Then the side went to conquer where others had failed for 15 years—Australia. Between 1993, when Australia lost to West Indies, until 2009, the national team had not been defeated at home. For South Africa, to be first team to win in Australia for 15 years was powerful.
Those two tours formed the foundation of six years in which South Africa did not lose away from home. Even though no other team had a record like this, South Africa remained second.
The truth is, South Africa lacked a knockout punch. A jab would have been enough if the team had won at home more often or whitewashed a team away. Against this backdrop South Africa took on England this year in the hope of something special.
Preparations were made with that in mind. Instead of a training camp at one of the usual venues in South Africa, the squad went to Switzerland for an adventure escape with explorer Mike Horn. Famed for circumnavigating the globe without any motorized transport, Horn is a tough guy in every sense of the word.
He made the squad ride up on bicycles and walk for kilometers with heavy backpacks, all on the same day. There was no cricket at all. It was only about being mentally and physically tough.
Wicketkeeper Mark Boucher, who was forced to retire after the first day on tour when he suffered a lacerated eyeball, was one of the outstanding athletes on this grueling journey. He rallied the troops when times were tough. Boucher transformed into a father figure and some of that may have rubbed off on Kallis. When Boucher was injured, Kallis stayed at the hospital for most of the night after his surgery. Kallis also stayed back at the hotel with Boucher the next day and did not go to the ground for a practice match. The next day, Kallis was at captain Graeme Smith’s side when he read out Boucher’s statement.
Kallis scored a century in the first Test, which South Africa won, and dedicated it to Boucher. In so doing, he also improved a record that had been magnificent everywhere but in England. He helped AB de Villiers, who had to take over Boucher’s wicket-keeping role, from his position in the slips and provided Graeme Smith with support due to his experience.
After seventeen years as an international cricketer, Kallis has blossomed late, in his own way. On this tour, Kallis contributed as a person as well as a cricketer. South Africa needed these contributions to go from good to great and the conduct of Kallis is a sign that the team is getting there.

Kallis Blossoms Late In The Orchard Of Victory

<h4> Cricket</h4>
The gentle Jamaican drawl is one of the lesser-heard accents in Harare. But, in the first week of December, it could be heard in conversation with English inflections, South African slang and Australian twangs.
The source of the Caribbean crooning was the world’s most expensive and sought after twenty-over cricketer, Chris Gayle; the other voices belonged to the many internationals who had signed up to compete in the Stanbic Bank 20 Series, a domestic cricket competition in Zimbabwe.
In a massive coup, Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) managed to lure Gayle and 19 other internationals to play in the tournament, all of them for minimal amounts. ZC achieved it through shrewd planning—the event would only last 10 days compared to others like it which go on for weeks—and careful spending of their steadily growing resources. The tournament underlined ZC’s success as the best thing to happen to sport in the country in the last decade.
<div id="attachment_1066" style="width: 484px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1066" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-1066" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/000_Par7042135-1024x768.jpg" alt="" width="474" height="356" />Zimbabwe&#8217;s Dynamos FC Partson Jaure (L) vies Esperance de Tunis forward Karim Awadhi (R) during their African Champions League football match at Rades Olympic stadium near Tunis on April 28, 2012. AFP PHOTO / SALAH HABIBI</div>
Like other sectors of Zimbabwean life, such as industry and agriculture, cricket has stuttered through post-independence plights and been crippled by them. Unlike those things, it has found a way to stand up again and thrive. Interest from sponsors has sparked, the national team are the sweethearts of the world stage after they made their return to the elite form of the game—Test cricket—last August; and administration, while not perfect, is functioning.
Ten years ago that was not the case. ZC groped through its darkest period in the early 2000s as it tried to change the image of the sport from a colonial, white man’s game, to a game for the people. They introduced a program of aggressive transformation and were met with supreme resistance that culminated in a walkout by 13 white players in 2004, leaving the cricketing core stripped of experience.
As a solution, promising, young black players were flung onto the international stage and managed to steal the occasional win. Eventually, the mountain of losses was too big and Zimbabwe voluntarily withdrew from Test cricket. They were also forced to cancel all domestic competition as hyperinflation dried up their coffers. By 2008, cricket in Zimbabwe—like almost everything else—was dead.
It took a small collection of determined men to breathe some life back into it. Ozias Bvute, the managing director of ZC, who was blamed for the collapse of the game, played a leading role in its regeneration. He secured sponsors, Stanbic Bank, Croco Motors and Delta Beverages, and pushed for a franchise system with five teams spread across the country. Bvute argued that this would professionalize domestic cricket and allow for greater development. Slowly, funds dripped in and within two years, the system was declared fruitful.
<div id="attachment_1067" style="width: 484px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1067" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-1067" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/TL_820893-1-1024x738.jpg" alt="" width="474" height="342" />KIMBERLEY, SOUTH AFRICA &#8211; OCTOBER 10, Shingarai Masakadza of Zimbabwe celebrates the wicket of David Miller of South Africa fro 25 runs during the 2nd Pro20 International match between South Africa and Zimbabwe at De Beers Diamond Oval on October 10, 2010 in Kimberley, South Africa Photo by Duif du Toit / Gallo Images</div>
The real roots of its success came from the behind-the-scenes work. Many of the players who had walked away were persuaded back into the fold. Former opening batsmen, Grant Flower, returned as batting coach to the national team, former captains Heath Streak and Alistair Campbell joined as bowling coach and chairman on the cricket committee respectively. Players who had left, such as Gavin Ewing, came home to play in the new franchise system.
Zimbabwe also secured foreign assistance. Englishman, Alan Butcher, was named head coach; former Australian fast-bowler, Jason Gillespie, signed on to coach one of the franchises; the Mid-West Rhinos, New Zealand all-rounder Chris Harris, was put in charge of the under-19s and stints from South Africa’s Allan Donald and Lance Klusener also added to the knowledge base. Talent emerged from regions that were previously unexplored such as, Masvingo, where left-arm fast bowler Brian Vitori was found.
Bvute and his staff also invited Australia, New Zealand and South Africa to send their A teams to play a series in Zimbabwe in a bid to ready them for a Test return. All of them agreed and although Zimbabwe did not win many matches, they competed. The practice games also allowed them to compile a squad of their best players, led by Brendan Taylor, the only white player who had not joined the rebels. Taylor, who was 17 at the time, did not want to let politics influence his sporting choices. His decision earned him the respect of his peers and countrymen, who rallied behind him as they made their Test comeback in August against Bangladesh.
In the seven months since then, Zimbabwe has hosted three incoming tours: Bangladesh, Pakistan and New Zealand and won the first one. They also visited New Zealand. Despite heavy defeats, their potential was evident and they have hope of growing as money and interest flow in. Interest from influential people like Chris Gayle has helped.
“You can see Zimbabwe have improved, they are more competitive, and their development programs are coming together,” he said, in that same drawl that, for one week in December, was the most popular voice in Harare.
&nbsp;
Football
One word sums up the beautiful game in Zimbabwe over the last five years and it’s not a very complimentary one—Asiagate. The saga has just about come full circle after it first emerged that matches played by a parks team masquerading as the Zimbabwean national team between 2007 and 2009, were fixed in favor of gamblers in Asian countries, which included Thailand and Malaysia. Eighty players have since been suspended for their role in colluding with Asian betting syndicates and Henrietta Rushwaya, former Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) chief executive, has been arrested on allegations of bribery and match fixing.
The stains of this scandal will taint the game for years to come. Although ZIFA has undergone a stringent clean-up, it still faces a FIFA investigation, which could see the suspended players and administrators banned for life and would leave the game grappling for relevance as it enters qualifying events for the World Cup and the African Nations’ Cup (AFCON). The country’s sports minister, David Coltart, has described football as being “riddled with corruption,” and admitted that the “structure of the professional game has declined.”
One of the reasons for the downward trend was that Zimbabwe football was highly politicized. President Robert Mugabe’s nephew, Leo, presided over ZIFA for three terms and is thought to be responsible for its deterioration. He is said to have removed administrations which were aligned with the opposition—the Movement for Democratic Change—and replaced them with officials sympathetic to the Mugabe regime, with little or no experience of running a national sport.
Under him, most local clubs were running losses and at national level funds had been exhausted. ZIFA currently operates out of a small, rundown house on Livingstone Street in Harare, where the curtains droop from the windows and the equipment inside is rundown. Zimbabwe is likely one of the few African countries where football is not the most popular sport. In a place as impoverished looking as this, it’s easy to see how players and administrators could be lured into corruption and may agree to be co-opted, even if it will worsen the image of the sport and the nation.
The country’s premier league is not televised by the national broadcaster because it is too expensive for them to do so. Cricket has overtaken it, in financial terms, with corporates preferring to put their money into a sport that gets wider exposure. Even smaller disciplines like hockey attract greater publicity than events on the football pitch.
In September, Zimbabwe hosted the African hockey championships in a newly renovated stadium in Bulawayo to public acclaim. A month earlier, their national football team played a friendly match against current Africa Cup of Nations Champions, Zambia. The event was so low key that the visiting team did not even have proper arrangements for their pre-match training session. ZIFA’s offices had a total of two employees manning the front desk the day before the match and neither had information about where Zambia could train; whether tickets were still available and at what price and where the new chief executive, Jonathan Mashingaidze, who had agreed to have an interview with an international media organization, was to be found.
The lack of activity around the match served as an indication of the dwindling interest in football in the country, from all spheres. While public interest is not especially high, player participation is also starting to dwindle and Shingirai Masakadza is an example of that. A tall, athletic young man who could make his name in almost any sport, Masakadza was part of the generation of black school-going kids that cricket left behind. Unlike his brother, Hamilton, he was not offered a scholarship to a prestigious, formerly white school and instead made his name kicking a football in a high-density area.
Masakadza was contracted as a professional footballer with one of the country’s “two big” clubs: Dynamos and Highlanders of Bulawayo, but struggled to hold down his place. In that time, he was contacted by a former school coach, who offered him the chance to join one of Zimbabwe’s cricket franchises. Masakadza was told that if he just ran in a little quicker and hit the deck a little harder, he could develop into a genuine fast bowler and may represent the country.
He duly swapped his football for a cricket ball and has no regrets about his decision. “Cricket offered me better opportunities than football. Right now I am in a position that most people would only dream of,” he said, after he was picked for the 2011 Cricket World Cup squad. Masakadza is living proof that cricket— not football—is being seen as the path to success in Zimbabwe. For a country that was on the verge of FIFA World Cup qualification in 1993, that is sad.

Tag: Cricket

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