Ken Borland

Proteas coach Mark Boucher has described the team’s fines meetings as being a bit of a giggle designed to build team spirit, but he has apologised for any offence caused in his affidavit to Cricket South Africa’s Social Justice and Nation-Building commission, which he released publicly on Monday.
Boucher has been accused of racial abuse dating back to his playing days following the testimony of former Protea Paul Adams, who said he was called “Brown Shit” in a fines meeting song.
“One way we try to build team spirit, as do many teams across the world, is to have fines meetings. … They were lighthearted with lots of laughter, singing and ribbing of team-mates. Management and the captain were often fined. … There would never really be a fine for an on-field event as this could, mistakenly, be taken personally.
“So ‘offences’ would typically be for wearing the wrong kit, being late for a meeting, talking out of turn in the fines meeting … and these fines would be accompanied by a song. … Lots of us had nicknames for each other which had a racial connotation and we all called each other those names. I was also given a nickname which made reference to my colour … but I can categorically say that I did not give Mr Adams the name ‘brown shit’.
“While at the time we thought it was playful banter within a team environment in which we all participated … , I deeply regret and apologise for the part I played by joining in with my team-mates in singing offensive songs or using offensive nicknames,” Boucher said in his affidavit.
Boucher made his debut for the Proteas in 1997 as a “naive” 20-year-old and, while he does not try to paint himself as a sweet young man, he strongly refutes any suggestions he was racist.
“I was a young man, barely out of my teens. In hindsight, we are all naive – the players, the coaches, the management. We were not only naive but also ill-equipped to deal with the new environment in which we found ourselves. … I have committed to educate myself so that I do not do or say things that are unintentionally offensive. …  I feel privileged to have experienced what I have and I deeply regret playing a role in not seeing or doing more for those who could have had a similar experience.
“I do wish to state categorically that nothing I have ever said or done was motivated by malice and was certainly not motivated by racism. … There has been an implicit insinuation in some media reports and by some people in social media, that I am a racist. The attack on my character by these people has been relentless, bereft of objectivity and evidence and appears motivated by a hidden agenda. My family and I have been traumatised by it,” Boucher said.

South Africa’s women have never won a series in the West Indies, but coach Hilton Moreeng is confident the Proteas can knock their hosts off that perch when they tour the Caribbean for three T20s and five ODIs starting on August 31.
Much of Moreeng’s confidence is based on the return of players such as captain Dane’ van Niekerk and Chloe Tryon, plus the wonderful form shown by South Africa’s representatives in The Hundred competition in England that ended last weekend. All-rounder Van Niekerk was named player of the series as she led the Oval Invincibles to the inaugural title, and pacer Marizanne Kapp was named player of the match in the final, her record figures of four for nine destroying the Southern Brave.
“This is the first time we’ve had the entire squad fully fit and raring to go since the last World Cup. We have not won a series before in the West Indies and our last tour there was not very joyful. But this time we are anticipating a very good tour as we welcome back Dane’ and Chloe. We’re very happy where we are sitting now.
“To see how our players contributed in The Hundred, the way Dane’ and Marizanne dominated in the final, shows the quality we have. We’re very happy with their achievements and it means we have players who are in good nick. And along with someone like Shabnim Ismail, they show the other players how to handle that high-pressure environment and execute your skills on the day,” Moreeng said on the morning of their departure on Monday night.
South Africa’s previous away series against the West Indies was in 2018 when they drew both the ODI and T20 series. In the final wash-up it was the slowness of the pitches that caused the Proteas the most problems.
“We know what to expect, we have players who have played a lot in the West Indies. The hardest thing are the very slow pitches, the West Indies play well on those and use their bowlers very well. We’re used to more pace on the ball, but over there you have to deal with the ball keeping low and facing lots of spinners.
“Our expectation though is to win a series in the West Indies, something we haven’t done before. We arranged slow pitches on this side to prepare better and it’s up to us to adapt. Our last tour to India was a good indicator of how well we can bat in those conditions and we must make sure we continue with that,” Moreeng said.

Kagiso Rabada is hardly a veteran of the cricket scene at just 26 years old, but he has been around for a while and, with an extremely wise and mature head on his shoulders, he is already finding ways to give back to the young pups rising not only in his chosen sport but in all spheres of athletic and artistic endeavour.
Rabada will lanch his own talent management agency on Saturday – KGR Sports and Entertainment, a combined effort with Ashley Kotzin, the CEO of ForwardZone, a 22-year-old company also in the field of talent management in the sports and arts.
“KGR is all about collaborations and networks, both locally and globally. With Ashley, who has more than 20 years experience in this field, we have access to lots of networks and it’s about building and leveraging those. Managing sports people is about much more than just signing a contract, it’s about leveraging the off-the-field opportunities as much as possible.
“We want to combine the on-field and off-field product and make it great for any athlete or artist. A lot of pieces need to come together for that and it has always been an interest of mine to be involved in the corporate space, this is something I’ve always wanted to explore. I think I can do it from a different perspective,” Rabada told Saturday Citizen on Friday.
Rabada not only has the pace and skill to stun opposition batsmen but also the business nous to impress someone with the expertise of Kotzin.
“What is true of KG as a person – and as a brand – is that he is multi-dimensional, multi-talented and so much more than just an on-field hero. He is also a leader and creator off of it. We are excited about being a part of all of the ways in which KG expresses himself – as an athlete, as a leader, as a creative, as a savvy businessman and community builder.
“His competitive edge, drive to succeed and his profile in the international sports arena are key elements to the growth and success of KGR. We are proud to have KG as a partner in this business, and look forward to walking a special journey with him. The confident and competitive athlete you see on the field is the same in business,” Kotzin said.

Cricket South Africa’s Social Justice and Nation-Building hearings are set to resume on Monday and now those implicated in the first three-and-a-half weeks of testimony will get the chance to sell their side of the story to the ombudsman, Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza.

So far the SJN hearings have been anything but boring as nearly 50 respondents have come before Ntsebeza and his fellow advocates and testified with great zeal about how they have been hurt or discriminated against by the game of cricket in this country.

Unfortunately, numerous critics and commentators have been a bit slow to realise that we have only heard one side of the story thus far. None of this evidence has been tested or cross-examined, but that hasn’t stopped sensational headlines and vicious social media attacks being made.

While many of the stories of hurt were eloquently and movingly presented, sadly some people abused the process to continue the campaign against CSA director of cricket Graeme Smith and Proteas coach Mark Boucher, making them the focus of their presentations. As if Smith and Boucher are personally responsible for all the awful things that happened in the 1990s and 2000s. And, judging by some of the hysterical reaction, they would already be locked away in a cell before being allowed to give evidence according to certain people’s idea of how justice works.

Discrimination based on race is what the SJN is looking for, but several of the complaints around selection ignore the fact that Linda Zondi was national convenor of selectors at the time, or Russell Domingo was the Proteas head coach. So is it Black people being discriminatory or are we going to deny both these great cricket servants their agency and say they were merely stooges for the few White people involved in the running of cricket at the time?

Omphile Ramela, the former president of the players’ association, has been one of the most vocal voices claiming rampant discrimination in cricket. His personal complaints centred around him no longer being contracted by the Highveld Lions as a batsman and for CSA turning down his application to succeed Zondi as the convenor of selectors. Enoch Nkwe was the Lions coach who decided not to renew his contract and Victor Mpitsang was rightfully given the job of selection convenor, given his broad knowledge of the players in the system through both his coaching and commentary work.

There are many witnesses who have every right, however, to be angry about how they were treated, especially in the earlier days of unity. Selection frustrations are always a part of cricket though and a player not being selected cannot automatically be ascribed to racism. While Khaya Zondo was no doubt embittered by what happened to him in India in 2015, it is probably true that the only South African cricketer who was definitely dropped from the Proteas XI due to the colour of his skin was Kyle Abbott in the World Cup debacle earlier that year.

Watching our gloriously transformed and brilliant Springboks in action and listening to the painful SJN Hearings around the same time, I cannot help but feel it is the strict quotas in cricket that have caused much of the anger, strife and bitterness.

Rugby has never had quotas as strictly enforced and their transformation has been more organic. And to try and paint them as ‘targets’ in cricket is totally disingenuous – if they were just targets then why was Ashwell Prince, according to his own testimony, hauled before a CSA disciplinary committee after failing to meet the requirements on one occasion as Cape Cobras coach?

White players, who lose their places in the team due to quotas, are naturally upset and wonder if the player replacing them is there on merit. This unhappiness has now extended to Coloured and Indian cricketers and is not good for changeroom morale.

The other side of the coin is that Black players also wonder if they are in the team on merit (as the majority are), and that type of self-doubt is lethal in a sport like cricket which relies so much on confidence and self-belief.