Ken Borland

Proteas coach Mark Boucher was no doubt still feeling the sting of beating almighty England but still not advancing from their pool after just one defeat when he said “you can’t describe our campaign as successful” as they exited the T20 World Cup on Saturday.

South Africa beat previously unbeaten tournament favourites England by 10 runs in Sharjah, but failed to qualify for the semifinals because their nett run-rate – 0.739 – was lower than Australia’s (1.216), the only team to win against the Proteas. Having posted an impressive 189/2, South Africa needed to restrict England to less than 131 on Saturday night to make the final four.

“You can’t describe our campaign as successful because we were knocked out, but it’s a bitter pill to swallow because we beat the in-form side in white-ball cricket for the last few years, a very dangerous England side,” Boucher said.

“It’s a tough one. We were under pressure after we lost that first game to Australia and the equation today was very difficult for us to get through, even though we did the job today.

“That was a tight first game, but we just didn’t bat well enough. We lost the toss, it was the first game and we weren’t sure what would be a good total. We thought 160, but 130 would have done the job.

“Maybe we could have gone harder against Bangladesh, but the pitch was going all over the shop and we lost a couple of early wickets. It’s all ifs and buts and it’s no good starting with those now,” Boucher said.

But the Proteas, considering in what disarray they were in a year ago, have given plenty of reason to believe they are on the right track, especially with the next T20 World Cup coming up in less than a year’s time in Australia.

“The team knows they are on a journey, they are on an upward curve and this tournament will stand us in  good stead. We did really well in some highly pressurised games, we will take confidence from that and hopefully go from strength to strength.

“We are heading in the right direction and we have won a lot of games lately, even though we unfortunately did not pass the test at this World Cup. I’ve said all along that we are improving.

“It’s about results as well of course, but we have played some really good cricket for quite some time. The players have been upskilled and they are learning to play in different situations.

“We are not the finished product, but we are working hard to get back to where we should be in world cricket. It’s going to be an exciting next year and we just need to be patient and keep challenging the players,” Boucher said.

Rassie van der Dussen believes that the successful style of T20 cricket the Proteas played in the West Indies can be transferred and honed in their three-match ODI series against Ireland that starts at Malahide in Dublin on Sunday.

The focus of the South African team, and all other international outfits, is currently on the T20 World Cup to be played in the UAE in October. But Van der Dussen said on Thursday that there are aspects of the ODI game that will help their preparation for the shortest format as well.

“For the batsmen, in 50-over cricket you get time in the middle which you don’t always get in T20, especially for those of us in the middle-order. Because you’ve got more time, you’ve got bigger scope to identify where your game is at and you can get yourself in properly. So ODI cricket is a good reference point and a real opportunity to nail down your plans.

“The last five overs of the innings was probably one area we weren’t too happy with against the West Indies and what we do in this series against Ireland is definitely transferable and we have a few more balls to get used to the conditions in 50-over cricket. In T20 cricket, sometimes you only have 10 balls to make an impact, hit some boundaries, and that’s where we came up short,” Van der Dussen said.

For the 32-year-old Van der Dussen, the job becomes harder because he tends to bob up and down the batting order, meaning his role changes from innings to innings.

“In the West Indies I came in a bit later than usual, but you have to be adaptable and bring the right skills on the day. I know where I came up short and I’ll be trying to make sure I don’t make the same mistakes again in this series. I wouldn’t say it’s frustrating only facing 10 balls because the reality is if you’re coming in No. 4 or 5 and there are only 10 balls left then it means the top three have done their job.

“So that’s good for the team. Sometimes you lose early wickets and then you need to grab the opportunity to bat for a long time and do the job of a top-order batsman. There are six or seven guys who need to get the runs for the team and it doesn’t matter who gets them,” Van der Dussen said.

The conspirational – and successful – efforts of the Cricket South Africa Members Council to block the new Memorandum of Incorporation proposed by the Interim Board were on full display on Saturday when the Special General Meeting called to pass the amendments and end the impasse in the sport’s governance was made open to the media.

That the Members Council were not actually going to embrace change and elevate the administration of cricket into the modern era was clear from the very beginning. The scheming began with Eastern Province president Donovan May, whose time on the gravy train extends through all of the governance crises of the last decade, trying to stop the meeting before it even began by pointing out they could not proceed until all 14 provincial presidents had logged on to the virtual platform. Gibson Molale of Northern Cape is believed to have been the late arrival.

May interrupted again during the address of Interim Board chair Dr Stavros Nicolaou to point out that Sascoc president Barry Hendricks, who Nicolaou had invited as an observer, should not have been invited unless he was allowed to have a voice. Hendricks had apparently turned down the invitation because of this, but then suddenly joined the meeting 35 minutes after it had started.

Following sports minister Nathi Mthethwa’s address in which he urged the Members Council to “not let us down as a country” and “consider the implications of choosing the wrong way”, Tebogo Siko of Northerns then proposed that Hendricks be allowed to speak.

Nicolaou questioned whether it was good governance to change the agenda during the meeting, but the Members Council agreed to let Hendricks speak. The Sascoc president then firmly stated that CSA could not go ahead with the amendments without them being passed by Sascoc first, clearly going against the wishes of Mthethwa for the CSA issue to finally be resolved.

Although the Interim Board announced earlier that the Members Council had agreed to the new MoI, there had been whispers during the week that they were trying to get Sascoc involved because their constitution is at odds with having a majority of independent directors on the board.

Mthethwa responded by saying Sascoc had failed to deal with the matter in the first place and had asked him to intervene. “We cannot reverse now. We want to see this process go smoothly, with no opposition and no obstruction. May cricket be the winner,” the minister said before taking his leave.

And then it was put to the vote, when the blockers of change were really revealed, because they were the ones who actively opposed a public vote. May asked if there could be a secret ballot, Interim Board member Haroon Lorgat called for transparency and a show of hands. Anne Vilas was the only provincial president who spoke out for transparency, with John Mogodi (Limpopo), Daniel Govender (KZN), Molale and Simphiwe Ndzundzu (Border) being vocal in supporting May’s call for a secret ballot.

Members Council acting president Rihan Richards then said secret ballots are “standard practice and nothing new”, which sums up exactly why CSA have been in a mess for so long, before the motion for non-transparency was passed.

The proposed amendments were not passed, with only six of the 14 presidents being in favour of a majority independent board and five in favour of an independent chair. Astonishingly, given the gravity of the issue, there were three abstentions in the first vote and four for the second amendment. But that also sums up the calibre of leadership on CSA’s Members Council.

Given an opportunity at outside centre by coach Jake White, Springbok Sevens stalwart Stedman Gans has become one of the Bulls’ star players in their successful 2020/21 campaign and while he achieves some goals, he says there are more boxes he wants to tick in the future.

The 23-year-old Gans, born in Vredenburg on the Cape West Coast but educated at Waterkloof and Tuks, played three Currie Cup games off the bench for the Blue Bulls in 2019, but it was a major surprise when White entrusted him in SuperRugby Unlocked with the No.13 jersey. And it was a masterstroke as Gans has brought considerable flair, skill and defensive nous to the midfield alongside another former Sevens star in Cornal Hendricks.

“The plan was always to come back to XVs and I’ve really enjoyed the last year with the Bulls, I’m definitely happy with the way things have gone. I’m not surprised that us Sevens guys have done so well because the way XVs is going, it definitely suits the Sevens guys more these days. More speed and skill are coming in, power still plays a big role but skill has a big influence now.

“Because I play at No.13, a big motivation for moving to Sevens was to sharpen my defence, my tracking ability, and that’s a big focus in Sevens. I think we’ve shown that Sevens players can come in and make a big difference in the 15-man game. A guy like Cornal is a Springbok, he has played for a long time, at a few places, and you get a lot from the experience and calmness that he brings,” Gans, who represented the Blitzbokke from 2016 to 2019, said.

Looking ahead to the Currie Cup semi-final against the Lions at Loftus Versfeld next weekend, Gans said the do-or-die nature of the Sevens circuit will certainly help him prepare for the nerves and the pressure of knockout rugby.

“There are certain things I’ve learned from Sevens for if you’re in these situations, these pressure positions, I’m fortunate to have been in those a few times. So I will just focus on the processes and not the outcome, and there are certain mental triggers and I will use those in the next week.

“We are very aware that the Lions will bring their A-game in the semi-final, so we must prepare well and be at our best as well. We expect their best game of the season from the Lions, they’re definitely going to bring their A-game so we have to too if we are going to play in the final,” Gans said.

As for the rest of 2021, it is an Olympic year and Gans would like to be in the mix for a return to the Springbok Sevens squad.

“The Olympic Games are a definite goal, but closer to the time those details will be tightened up. But I have spoken to coach Jake White and it is his intention and mine to give me the opportunity to go to Japan if the Blitzbokke want me. It will be a very difficult decision if the Springboks want me at the same time, I will have to make that if we get there,” Gans said.