Ken Borland

There may still be a lot of water to flow under the bridge in terms of LIV and a deal to unify golf once again, but the Stinger GC team, made up of four South Africans, is pushing ahead with plans to grow their popularity at home and ultimately bring the breakaway league to this country.

Latest reports suggest Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, LIV’s chief backers, is in advanced talks over buying a 6% investment in PGA Tour Enterprises.

Richard Glover, the general manager of Stinger GC, which comprises Louis Oosthuizen, Dean Burmester, Branden Grace and Charl Schwartzel, says LIV is here to stay and eager to expand their presence in South Africa.

“It’s a team that really works and now we are trying to build a business brand for it. South Africans understand team sport and Stinger comprises four very authentic people, what you see is what you get with them. They are great friends and they have a great relationship,” Glover, who was previously the CEO of Tennis SA and a vice-president of the ATP Tour, told Rapport at Leopard Creek this week.

“I’m absolutely convinced LIV can work in South Africa and there is definitely an interest in hosting an event here. The when and the where are still open for discussion, but I believe there is a big opportunity for that moving forward. Maybe in 2026 or 2027?

“The obstacles are the exchange rate and the economic situation here, but LIV see it as a key market because of the history of golf here and the support base it has. LIV would resonate with our fans and it would be incredibly exciting to see some of the best golfers in the world up against our South African boys on their home turf.

“Ultimately we want to grow the Stinger and LIV brands here. We want to have a year-round footprint, so you will see Stinger clothing in the pro shops,” Glover said.

Burmester and Schwartzel were both in contention at the weekend in the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek, while Oosthuizen is the defending champion. There is clearly nothing wrong with the standard of play in LIV Golf.

“We’re still all competitors. It may be a different tour, but it’s definitely not the case that our games have become worse,” Schwartzel said. “There are great players on the LIV tour, names all the way through like Mickelson, Johnson, De Chambeau and Cam Smith, and we work extremely hard. We still arrive on the Monday and have an extra day to practise. Playing three rounds actually makes it harder to win because there is no let-up. I shot 71 on the first day here [Leopard Creek] and in LIV that would put you out of contention. With four rounds, you have more of a chance to make up the deficit. People who doubt the standard of play are just looking for excuses to criticise the tour.

Some of the brash new elements LIV have introduced would be considered terrible behaviour on the established tours, but this year’s event in Adelaide provided incredible entertainment.

Stinger GC and Ripper GC went head-to-head in a playoff for the title and the intensity was incredible, perhaps because they are the two teams with the strongest identities, being composed of South Africans and Australians respectively.

“Growing up, I played cricket and used to dream of the stadium-style contest. That was the closest I’ve got to experiencing that,” Burmester said. “There were thousands of people within yards of the golfers. I could barely make my backswing in some places, you’re asking 30 rows to move back. It was nervewracking and we lost, but it really helped my game.

“South Africa would be an incredible fit for LIV and there is work behind the scenes to make it happen, we are pulling on many strings. I feel we can create that Australian vibe, that stadium-style finish.”

Imagine a rematch at Sun City, South Africa versus Australia? With the Chasing the Sun documentary team doing behind-the-scenes coverage as they are currently doing for Stinger GC …

“That playoff was a critical moment for LIV and the scenes in Adelaide were incredible,” Glover said. “South Africa against Australia is always a grudge match because we both have such strong national identities. We would love a rematch with the Rippers!”

Graeme Smith may have only been 22 years old when he was appointed as national captain in 2003, but democracy in this country was only nine years old then and the Proteas were a bit of a mess, so in many ways he was the big, older brother South African cricket desperately needed.

As a brash young man still trying to make his way in international cricket, Smith was probably only fully aware of the culture problems within the team after a few years. After the disappointment of the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean, Smith set about fixing the Proteas, alongside manager Mohammed Moosajee, who was appointed in 2008, and the input of life coaches like Paddy Upton and Jeremy Snape.

Protea Fire and a far more inclusive culture were born, one which acknowledged that they were representing a country which had a divided past. Honesty and Ubuntu were required, they were playing for more than just themselves.

The result was a much happier team and it showed in performance as they became the No.1 side in the world.

When Smith retired in 2014 he hoped the Protea Fire legacy would live on. How sad it must have been for him that, just five years later, the Proteas were in rack and ruin. Typical of the leader he is, Smith agreed to try and restore South African cricket to former glories by becoming Director of Cricket at the end of 2019.

But worse was to follow as the very people who had pushed Cricket South Africa to the precipice then spearheaded a campaign against Smith. It culminated in the Social Justice and Nation-Building hearings, where it seemed as many vile untruths were spoken as there were painful reminders of a shameful past.

The totally inadequate work of Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza was finally undone this week when Smith was cleared of all charges of racism by an independent arbitration hearing. CSA gave notice of their defeat – with costs – at 9pm on a Sunday night and board chairman Lawson Naidoo issued a statement that said it was now “appropriate to recognise the extraordinary contribution that Graeme has made to South African cricket”. It was almost as if the history we know we lived through as Proteas fans was now officially approved.

Unfortunately, there is lasting damage – one only has to see on social media the bitter divisionists refusing to accept the arbitrators’ findings – and Naidoo’s closing comment – “we very much hope that he will still work in the cricket world in appropriate capacities going forward” – hints at the fact that Smith’s expertise as the most experienced captain in Test history is now probably lost to South African cricket and will be snapped up by some other country.

If it’s not bad enough losing so much talent and I.P. to overseas teams thanks to the exchange rate, we are also actively chasing away people who could contribute so much good to our sport.

Head coach Mark Boucher’s disciplinary hearing is still to come and the outcome of Smith’s arbitration suggests there is still hope that the ‘tentative’ and unproven but damning allegations made by the SJN will receive the proper, unbiased and legally sound treatment they deserve.

A new Director of Cricket is also still to be appointed, with Enoch Nkwe probably still the favourite to succeed Smith.

Having to appoint a new head coach for tough tours of India, England and Australia as his first task would not make his life any easier, but then again the good of the Proteas, who bring in 80% of CSA’s income, is way down the list of priorities of those who have grudges to settle.

This summer’s premier T20 tournament may be confined to a bubble in Gqeberha, but there has still been space for some highly entertaining, impressive cricket in the first week of the CSA T20 Challenge.

The eight provinces have all played twice and the Boland Rocks and Free State Knights are the only teams who have not yet won a game. Overall it has been a highly competitive event, with Boland coming agonisingly close to beating the Northerns Titans.

The North-West Dragons, with the only bonus point so far, and Western Province are the two sides who have won both their matches, but the gap between them and the KZN Dolphins, Central Gauteng Lions, Northerns and Eastern Province Warriors is not large.

The Lions get the chance to show that on Sunday when they take on WP.

Looking at the bigger picture, and a future that includes another T20 World Cup in October/November in Australia, who are the players that the national selectors will be keeping an eye on?

One first needs to ask where are the gaps in the current Proteas team, who performed better than expected in the previous T20 World Cup, albeit in conditions that will be very different to Australia.

The well-travelled David Miller has world-class T20 stats – he averaged 47 last year at a strike-rate of 149 – and is a certainty for Australia, but there is hopefully space in the squad for another finisher, someone who can be groomed to succeed the 32-year-old somewhere down the line.

Two youngsters who have caught the eye are the 21-year-old Tristan Stubbs of EP and 23-year-old Donovan Ferreira of the Titans. They are scoring at a strike-rate of 189 and 152 respectively in this tournament, while Stubbs has a career strike-rate of 148 and Ferreira 157.

The Lions owe a considerable debt to Sisanda Magala for ensuring they are not with Boland and Free State at the bottom of the log with zero points. The burly pace bowler has been superb with the ball, especially at the death, and his eight overs so far have cost just 6.62 runs per over, and he chipped in with a couple of key wickets that killed off the KZN charge to victory on Thursday.

Magala also shone with the bat. Coming in at 95/5 in the 12^th over, he scored a punishing 37 off just 27 balls to lift the Lions to 156/8, which proved to be just enough.

Magala has not yet shown the same expertise at international level, but in a team that is often criticised for their bowling skills on flat pitches (expected in Australia), he brings a package that still looks useful.

South Africa will no doubt have to restructure their team a bit in Australia to reflect the more pace-friendly conditions, but young fast bowlers have not exactly been shoving their hands up in the CSA T20. The best quicks have been veterans like Magala, Hardus Viljoen, Junior Dala and Beuran Hendricks.

But it has been pleasing to see the change in mindset surrounding the use of spin that Mark Boucher spearheaded in the national team start to filter down to the provinces. Spinners have done wonderfully well on the slow pitches at St George’s Park and some potential stars are starting to come through.

Left-armer Johannes Diseko has been key to North-West’s surprise charge to the top of the log, while Proteas like George Linde, Senuran Muthusamy, Bjorn Fortuin and Aaron Phangiso continue to shine.

Prenelan Subrayen has shown he is a quality off-spinner and Imraan Manack is key to the Boland attack; 19-year-old leg-spinner Caleb Seleka looks highly promising for North-West too.

Most positively, the presence of Proteas stars like Miller, Tabraiz Shamsi, Janneman Malan, Quinton de Kock and Dwaine Pretorius has ensured that quality runs through this summer’s CSA T20 Challenge.

Two things that are obvious in this current Proteas team, highlighted by their tremendous series win over India, is the amount of fight and potential that resides in this squad.

By triumphing over the challenge of an Indian team featuring two of the best fast bowlers in the world in Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah, as well as a side featuring the batting talents of a top six that are all inside the top-35 of the ICC rankings, the Proteas have done their reputation a world of good. For a team in transition to claim the scalp of the No.1 side in Test cricket must rank as one of the best achievements since isolation.

The series win was marked by the arrival of two exciting players for the future in batsman Keegan Petersen and left-arm quick Marco Jansen, whose potential with the bat has already seen him claim the No.7 spot of the typical all-rounder.

The 21-year-old Jansen only made his Test debut in the first Test at Centurion because Duanne Olivier was not yet fully fit for five days of cricket after a bout of Covid. But Jansen has cashed in on friendly bowling conditions in quite remarkable fashion, taking 19 wickets at an average of just 16.47. Only Kagiso Rabada (20 at 19.05) took more wickets in the series.

Jansen’s bounce, pace and priceless ability to move the ball both ways means he has looked right at home in Test cricket and he has also shown the tough temperament you want from your fast bowlers.

Petersen scored just 15 and 17 at SuperSport Park but then found his groove with three crucial half-centuries in his last four innings. And he did all of that in the tough No.3 position, with Aiden Markram’s continued failures meaning he came to the wicket early in every innings.

It led to suggestions that perhaps Petersen’s path into Test cricket should be eased by dropping down the order a bit, but the 28-year-old has emphatically made the No.3 position his own for at least the rest of the summer. The leading run-scorer in the series with 276 at an average of 46, Petersen’s temperament and mental toughness, excelling in tough situations when the pressure was on, has been even more impressive than his slick strokeplay.

With Dean Elgar and Temba Bavuma also having good series and Rassie van der Dussen playing important roles in the two daunting run-chases at the Wanderers and Newlands, it would be silly to contemplate too many changes to the batting order.

One player who might have played his last Test as an opening batsman though is Markram. As talented as he is and as well as he has done previously in the position, a return of 80 runs in his last eight innings is not good enough. Sarel Erwee, who has acted as his understudy for the better part of a year now, was the leading run-scorer for SA A against India A last month and deserves to get a chance in New Zealand next month.

As for Markram, there has been talk of him playing as a middle-order batsman, which would be interesting, but he needs to go back to domestic cricket and force his way back into the team in that position through weight of runs.

Coach Mark Boucher also deserves to have a deeper well of public support for his role in inspiring the team to such a memorable, unexpected triumph.

After a poor performance in the first Test, well done to the Proteas, who were without a key fast bowler in Anrich Nortje, for fighting back and then lasting the distance in what has been a fascinating series. The action has been gripping and the twists in fortune quite riveting.

Long live Test cricket!