Ken Borland

I suppose one should pay Cricket South Africa’s Members Council their dues for the sort of sheer bloodymindedness and obstinacy that, if our batsmen could replicate it at the crease, would ensure that the Proteas never lose another Test match.

But now, with the game in this country teetering on the precipice, it really is time for them to give up the stonewalling and save us all a lot of time, effort and frustration, by accepting the inevitable changes in governance that will bring a majority independent board. Ultimately, they are trying to defy the sports minister, which is a pointless exercise reminiscent of when the SA Rugby Union, through their bombastic president Louis Luyt, took Nelson Mandela to court in 1998.

You may win the odd legal battle, but you are most certainly not going to win the war.

Dr Stavros Nicolaou, the chairman of the Interim Board, this week detailed every step in the negotiations with the Members Council and it reminded me of those World War I soldiers who would fight for days in the muddy, bloody trenches to add just a metre or two to their frontline.

And now, the handful of recalcitrants on the Members Council who scuppered the Special General Meeting last weekend are considering legal action to stop both a new constitution and Minister Nathi Mthethwa’s punitive action that is yet to be announced. CSA is an organisation that has spent millions and millions on legal fees in the last couple of years, robbing the game itself of much-needed resources, so it might seem a bit unfair that the Interim Board (their antagonists) now have to give their approval in order for the Members Council to enlist the help of lawyers in their battle, but thank goodness it is the case.

Much of the Members Council’s delaying tactics seem to have revolved around deliberate misrepresentations of what the Interim Board’s new Memorandum of Incorporation actually says. And Nicolaou confirmed this week that, apart from a majority independent board and an independent chair, everything else is negotiable. Which has not been the picture portrayed by the recalcitrants.

Do the Members Council want a 15-person board? That’s fine, then the equation will be eight independent directors, five non-independent and the two executives (CEO & CFO). Or a 13-strong board? Then the make-up will be 7-4-2; even a board of 11 is possible, with six independents, three non-independents and the two executives.

In terms of the criteria for directors, the nominations committee can decide whether they want an emphasis on a cricket background or skills in legal affairs, accounting or finance. There is no need for these criteria to be stipulated in the MoI.

What has been put in the MoI is the make-up of the all-important nominations committee that will select the independent directors. It is pleasing to see the six-person panel will include either a men’s or women’s former international player nominated by SACA, alongside a former CSA president nominated by the Interim Board, a Members Council representative and people from the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Institute of Directors and the Legal Practice Council.

And the definition of an independent director precludes anyone involved in the administration of the game at provincial or national level, not everyone involved in the game such as coaches or former players.

This MoI has been debated and pored over and modified since the first meeting of the working group, made up of three representatives each from the Members Council and Interim Board, on January 31. According to Nicolaou, on April 15, two days before the ill-fated SGM, the Members Council had agreed to the new MoI.

Their sudden about-turn, orchestrated in the most scheming, underhand manner, has meant all those months of effort have been wasted. As Nicolaou pointed out, “the Members Council continuing to kick this can down the road has awful consequences on the hard-working employees of CSA and the players”.

And think of Anne Vilas, the Central Gauteng Lions president who has been at the forefront of taking a public stand against the recalcitrants. In fact, think of her husband Doug, who has hardly seen his wife for the last few months such has been the number of late-night meetings she has had to attend as the Interim Board and the Members Council have wrangled.

For all our sakes, let’s hope the Members Council relents while there is still time.

A top-class century by Dean Elgar on a tricky Wanderers pitch has put South Africa in a position of strength in the second Test against Sri Lanka and the gritty left-hander said on Monday that he enjoyed the challenge and being able to cope with the various fluctuations in batting flow that inevitably happen during four hours at the crease.

Elgar’s 127 was the bedrock of the South African first innings of 302 that gave them a commanding lead of 145, but apart from displaying his usual tenacious streak, it was also a fluent innings, coming off just 163 deliveries and featuring 22 boundaries.

“It’s about the ebb and flow of batting in Test cricket and you do go through periods when you have to absorb pressure, and then you’ll have a short window where you can score more freely when the bowlers maybe start searching for a little bit extra. So I went through the gears quite a bit, but that’s the nature of Test cricket – you can’t just have one gear and expect to be consistent.

“It was tough, we know what the Wanderers is like, it was bowler-friendly conditions and there was a lot of movement and in the air too. So the mental aspects of batting are challenged and it’s nice to put yourself through a challenge like that. It’s like coming out the other side of a tunnel and if your team is then in a good position then that’s all you can ask for,” Elgar said after notching the second-fastest of his 13 Test centuries.

While Elgar and Rassie van der Dussen (67) shared a second-wicket stand of 184 – a record both for South Africa against Sri Lanka and in all Wanderers Tests – there was a glaring failure by the rest of the batting line-up to capitalise as the Proteas lost their last nine wickets for 84 runs. Instead of shutting the tourists out of the game through sheer pressure of runs, they gave Sri Lanka a glimmer of hope and the visitors batted gamely, led by captain Dimuth Karunaratne’s 91 not out, to reach 150 for four at stumps.

“It was a well-under-par total especially after the big partnership, but this is not an easy place to bat, especially for the new batsman coming in. There were quite a few very good balls bowled so credit to Sri Lanka, and when you come in you have to really be on form. If you’re able to get through that tough time up front, if you respect the conditions, then you can cash in.

“It was not ideal that I got out and then Rassie straight afterwards, but maybe we relaxed a bit mentally, maybe we need to trust our techniques a bit longer. If you can apply yourself for lengthy periods, leave well and trust your defence, then the conditions will start to flatten out. If you stay in your bubble and not play rash shots, then the pitch does start to do less,” Elgar said.

Watching the swashbuckling David Miller blazing away at the crease, it seems to be all about enjoying the game for the left-hander and the Proteas star said on Tuesday that the fun factor had been a major part of his decision to return to KwaZulu-Natal to play for the Dolphins.

Miller returns to the province of his birth after just two seasons with the Knights, the central franchise having also lost another key batsman in Theunis de Bruyn back to the Titans.

“I have played with a lot of the Dolphins guys from about 11 or 12 years old, and it makes the game even more special playing alongside your mates. Coming back is the next step in my career and I hope that I can help the Dolphins to more success in the future while enjoying the game a lot. They have a good team spirit going and I wanted to be part of that.

“My two seasons with the Knights were great and they were just what my career needed. My time there challenged me in different areas, but it was quite an easy decision for me to come back to Durban. I do a lot of travelling as it is and so the travel between Durban and Bloemfontein became an issue and I am happy to be back where it all started for me,” Miller said at Kingsmead on Tuesday.

The 28-year-old was the Knights’ top T20 batsman last season and, given that he is one of the world’s best white-ball cricketers, the return of Miller could just get the Dolphins one step further after they were beaten finalists in the RamSlam T20 Challenge and shared the Momentum One-Day Cup title.

“The Dolphins had a good season in white-ball cricket last year and they are building something special and I am looking forward to adding to that this season. I have heard a lot of good things about coach Grant Morgan and his passion for the game and his work ethic beyond training and matches, it is exciting,” Miller said.

“You can’t put a value on having a guy like Dave back in his home environment, what sits in his heart are his family and friends and it’s in his DNA to want to do well for the Dolphins. His international experience is also invaluable, he’s played around the world in pressure situations.

“And he’s a fantastic human being. We are on the up, we’ve laid the foundation and I’m sure he can give us that extra little push to take us to the next level,” Morgan said.

https://citizen.co.za/sport/south-africa-sport/sa-cricket-sport/1946165/david-miller-returns-to-his-fish-bowl/

Titans wicketkeeper/batsman Heinrich Klaasen was celebrating a first call-up to the South Africa squad for their Test series against New Zealand on Friday, convenor of selectors Linda Zondi saying a “positive presence at the crease” had played a large part in his selection.

Klaasen has looked a top-class talent since his days with the dominant Tuks Varsity team and he now follows his skipper from his student days, Theunis de Bruyn, into the Test squad as one of the back-up players, having scored 635 runs in four-day cricket this season, at an average of 48.84.

Zondi confirmed that it was a close-run thing between Klaasen and Rudi Second of the Knights, who scored 684 runs at 52.61, with the 25-year-old Klaasen being considered a closer match in terms of approach to Quinton de Kock, the player he is understudying.

“It was a very close call and it could have gone either way. Rudi is a very experienced player and is definitely not out of our plans, but we just felt that Heinrich has a positive presence at the crease, he’s tidy behind the stumps and there’s something about him.

“He’s a good striker of the ball, a fearless cricketer. We’ve watched him a lot and we feel he can play the same role as Quinton de Kock,” Zondi told Saturday Citizen on Friday.

While the presence of players such as De Kock, Kagiso Rabada, Duanne Olivier, De Bruyn and Klaasen makes it a young squad, the selectors have also recalled veteran Morne Morkel, the 32-year-old who has not played a Test in more than a year.

Morkel is only two 50-over games into his comeback from serious back issues, but Zondi said they wanted some experience around to guide a young attack. Vernon Philander has played 40 Tests, but Keshav Maharaj (4), Wayne Parnell (5), Rabada (14), Olivier (1) and Chris Morris (2) have played just 26 Tests between them.

“We’ve been guided by our medical team with Morne and he’s 100% fit. We want him to play more games, but his extra experience is required, because we don’t want to be caught out if anything happens. We’re quite comfortable in terms of all-rounders, so Morne must just go there and compete, providing us with extra variety,” Zondi said.

Squad: Stephen Cook, Dean Elgar, Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis (Capt), JP Duminy, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, Vernon Philander, Keshav Maharaj, Wayne Parnell, Kagiso Rabada, Duanne Olivier, Morne Morkel, Chris Morris, Theunis de Bruyn, Heinrich Klaasen.