Ken Borland

‘Don’t bite the hand that feeds you’ is a well-known phrase and in Cricket South Africa’s case it translates to ‘don’t ignore the requests of whoever is giving you your payslip’ as they announced on Monday that no tickets will be made available to the general public for the three Tests against India that start on Boxing Day.

CSA have made their immense gratitude to the Board of Control for Cricket in India for agreeing to the tour despite all the recent Covid scares well-known, with the broadcast fees providing a timely boost to their dwindling financial reserves. So when India requested that there be no spectators present during the series, for the protection of their somewhat reluctant players, they were always going to accede.

CSA were even willing to say in their official statement that it was a joint decision by the two bodies. But sources from the stadiums who are going to host the three matches have confirmed India was clearly reluctant to have the general public at the games.

There will apparently still be some spectators at the matches because a limited number of hospitality suites will be available for sponsors and administrators.

Another disappointing revelation for cricket fans on Monday was the news that the Mzansi Super League, scheduled for February, will revert back to just being an ordinary CSA T20 Challenge competition.

The Proteas are due to play a Test series in New Zealand from mid-February, which means they will certainly miss most of the T20 tournament, and, according to insiders, there has been little interest from any overseas stars in the MSL.

The difficulties of international travel during these times of Covid have played a role, as has the rand/dollar exchange rate, with CSA apparently needing to fork out large amounts to get rather average overseas cricketers to participate.

It means fans will have to be satisfied with seeing the young pups of domestic cricket battle it out, and it will also be held in a bio-bubble at St George’s Park.

CSA made the decision apparently in an effort to protect the MSL brand, given that the product in February is bound to be watered down compared to the premier global event they envisaged when they first introduced the troubled event.

GQEBERHA, Eastern Cape – Vodacom’s 17-year title sponsorship of the Vodacom Origins of Golf Series makes them one of the Sunshine Tour’s most loyal partners, giving South African professionals playing opportunities through the winter, but the telecommunications company has always also been focused on the higher calling of helping develop people in general and supporting charitable initiatives in the communities they visit.

This week the Vodacom Origins of Golf Series is in Gqeberha for the two-day Pro-Am and then the professional tournament at Humewood Golf Club, and Tshego Malinga, the executive head of department for the Customer Business Unit Eastern Region, is focused on making sure the event touches many peoples’ lives.

“We have the ability to make sure profit meets purpose and I am a firm believer that the two are never mutually exclusive. At the centre of everything we do at Vodacom is the desire to enable our customers to live out their purpose. We do that by connecting them in an environment in which they can express their passions and aspirations.

“But it’s also important for Vodacom to be part of the development of South Africa as a whole, and sport plays a very important part in the development of the nation. We want to help people explore their talent and hopefully some of them can go on to become international icons. We also want to be helpful to the community and the Vodacom Origins of Golf Series has really assisted in the funding of many charities,” Malinga says.

This week’s Vodacom Origins of Golf Series Pro-Am at Humewood will be raising funds for the Maro Foundation, which was started in 2014 by Pamela Mabini.

A social and gender activist from Kwazakhele, Mabini used her corporate connections to distribute food, blankets, clothes, shoes and hygiene products to the homeless. Since then she has opened two facilities in Johannesburg for the rehoming of mentally handicapped, disabled or HIV-positive children who have been abandoned by their families,

“We have the ability to really help this NGO that is also helping in the fight against gender-based violence, so that’s our big focus for this tournament. We want to help those who have less access to things we might take for granted. We need a consciousness of the environment we operate in, we can’t just be focused on our share price.

“It is super special for us to be able to host this event and help the Maro Foundation in these times of Covid and all the hesitation around that. It’s a tricky balance making sure people are safe but also bringing them together. We really want the show to go on, so we can keep helping people. It’s an honour for Vodacom to be able to do that,” Malinga says.

Although not a golfer herself, Malinga is also acutely aware of the history of Humewood Golf Club, one of South Africa’s top courses and the host of many major tournaments.

“Vodacom, Humewood and the Eastern Cape are all very iconic brands, so this event is the amalgamation of very strong South African brands. We all have a responsibility to society and Humewood has a strong heritage in both Eastern Cape and Port Elizabeth society. It has credibility because of its heritage and this collection of brands people love makes it easier to galvanise them around their shared history and love for the province and city,” Malinga says.

The Pro-Am Dinner on the eve of the Vodacom Origins of Golf Series has already raised R25 000 for the Maro Foundation, with the fundraising efforts continuing all week.

It would be tempting, given their superb fightback to level the series against the West Indies at 1-1 over the weekend, to give the Proteas a general amnesty for the shortcomings in their T20 game, but with the third match looming on Tuesday night, there are a couple of areas that still need attention.

Despite not having a recognised sixth bowler, the Proteas did exceptionally well with the ball to limit the deep and explosive West Indian batting line-up to just 150 for nine on the small St George’s ground on Grenada.

Spinners George Linde and Tabraiz Shamsi were absolutely outstanding. Coming on straight after the powerplay, they bowled six overs in tandem and squeezed the home side so effectively that they collapsed from 53 for two after six overs to 76 for five at the end of the 12^th over. The combined figures of man of the match Linde (4-0-19-2) and Shamsi (4-0-16-1) were a remarkable three for 35 in eight overs.

Kagiso Rabada and the excellent Anrich Nortje, the pick of the pacemen in both matches so far, learnt quickly from the mauling in the first T20 that if you are going to bowl fast on this more typical Caribbean pitch then you have to bowl full. But Lungi Ngidi, bowling like he’s in a Test match, has really struggled, conceding 95 runs in his seven overs thus far.

A change needs to be made and white-ball specialist Sisanda Magala, who has the skills to do well on these pitches, would be a good pick. Swing bowler Beuran Hendricks and Lizaad Williams, who has shown an ability to adapt to different conditions, could also be in the running.

South Africa’s other big problem is the lack of animation shown by the batsmen in the second half of the innings. Reeza Hendricks and Quinton de Kock have done well up front, with powerplay scores of 53 for one and then 69 without loss (the Proteas’ fourth highest score ever in the first six overs), but then the innings have fizzled out.

In the first T20, South Africa were 95 for two after 11 overs but instead of doubling their total as could reasonably have been expected, they limped to 160 for six. In the second match, their finishing was dire as they scored only 28 runs in the last five overs and lost four wickets (138-3 to 166-7).

It has not helped that the dynamic De Kock has been dismissed in the seventh over, straight after the powerplay, in both matches.

Heinrich Klaasen has really struggled for boundaries, not getting a single one in the 23 balls he has faced. Given that the Proteas need a sixth bowler, Aiden Markram could be pressed into duty in a new T20 role in the middle-order.

Wiaan Mulder and Andile Phehlukwayo are both established bowlers but choosing them would weaken the batting.

The SuperBowl is a television extravaganza and one of the major sporting events of the year, and yet in this country only a minority of sports fans seem to pay much attention to it. But there is one South African sporting legend who is a keen follower of gridiron and American sport in general.

Naas Botha has had a fascination for American Football since his groundbreaking move to the United States in 1983 when he tried out as a placekicker for the Dallas Cowboys. It was a sensational move by the best flyhalf in the world of rugby, from the amateur game to the different world of American pro sport.

While it helped Botha establish himself as a true professional athlete, since 1995 and the end of amateurism in rugby union, there has been little interest by other rugby players in playing American Football.

But Botha believes it won’t be long before a top-class player is lured by the promise of a massive payday in the United States.

“The problem I had when I went over was that I turned up with nothing, with no track record. Half of the people there didn’t even know where South Africa was and they thought we were wandering around with lions. The whole structure of American Football means College football is very important and they take all your stats from there.

“It would be much better now for a player to go over. The rest of the world has a much better knowledge of American Football now and I think a lot more people involved in gridiron know about rugby. Thanks to social media, I think a lot of them will even know about Handre Pollard for instance.

“Organisations like Laureus also bring a lot more attention to American sports. World sport is at a different level these days: in the U.S. they know about our top rugby players and South Africans know about what opportunities there are outside the country. Look at how many players are in France or England; compare that to when I went to play in Italy in 1987 and there was such a big hoohaa,” Botha told The Citizen.

Kicking in American Football is of course not just about distance and accuracy: Botha estimates you have about 1.2 seconds to kick a field goal and it requires a different frame of mind compared to slotting conversions and penalties in rugby. Plus one has to get used to being allowed to be tackled without the ball in gridiron, hence all the protective equipment.

It was thanks to the innovative Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry, considered a legend in American Football after 29 years at the helm of the Texan franchise, that Botha played gridiron. But it was the presence of another Cowboys stalwart, Rafael Septien, that prevented the Springbok hero from making more of an impact. Botha was brought in as the back-up kicker, but Septien rarely broke down and so his appearances were limited.

Another South African placekicker, Gary Anderson, had better fortune and became one of the NFL’s leading all-time points-scorers with the Pittsburgh Steelers, even playing against Botha once.

It remains a regret for Botha that during those couple of years of gaining splinters on the bench, he did not take up other offers that came his way, particularly from College (university) teams.

“It was a great experience, being with a big team like the Cowboys, but I was just there at the wrong time. I hung around with the Cowboys, but I should have taken one of the university contracts I was offered. I could’ve taken my experience with the Cowboys with me, built a reputation and a stats base and worked my way through the ranks, but I didn’t know the set-up then,” Botha said.

As it was, he caught game time with the Dallas Harlequins in the national championship, inspiring them to their only triumph in that second-tier competition.

So what of this year’s SuperBowl?

Botha remains a Dallas Cowboys fan and was gutted when they lost 26-21 to the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs, but he concedes the New England Patriots have what it takes to claim their fourth SuperBowl title.

“I’m still a Cowboys fan and how they lost that playoff I don’t know, they blew it. I’ve watched both the Patriots and the Seahawks this year, they’re two very good sides, both very balanced. But I went for a mini-training camp with the Patriots and they are the team to beat, they’ve been fantastic lately,” he said.

What really intrigues SuperSport’s long-time rugby analyst about American Football though is what it can teach those running rugby in South Africa.

“The United States is where sport is at a different level, they’ve shown how professional sport should be run, why try and reinvent the wheel? They have franchises and I wonder if our top rugby teams should not be privately owned? Why postpone it any longer? The unions all have schools, junior and women’s rugby all to look after as well.

“In gridiron, players are on $50 million contracts, in baseball it can be $200 million. Here, if a union wants to keep Bryan Habana, they need to offer R30 million over three years but nobody can afford it. Do we really want to see all the top South African players based overseas?”