Scary T20 reality dawns…
September 4, 2018 by devneilmanthorp
One of my most enduring memories of the 2003 World Cup is of the tears building in a wonderful, hard-working and loyal lady’s eyes as the awful realisation finally dawned, and then the slow trickle down her cheeks. She had been literally unable to accept the possibility that the match against Sri Lanka at Kingsmead would not restart – could not face the appalling reality that the host nation would not be featuring in the knockout stages, never mind winning it. Having dedicated much of the preceding four years of her life to the team and the event, she had been willingly persuaded that this was South Africa’s ‘time.’ An hour after the match was abandoned she was in a state of clinical shock. The memories came back to me this week as the but similarly grim reality has slowly been setting in that the country’s desperately needed, new T20...
New T20 League in trouble — again
September 4, 2018 by devneilmanthorp
    The T20 Global League’s collapse is having a far greater impact on South African cricket than any of us could have imagined. Instead of a scenario in which the country’s best player are incentivised to stay at home and commit themselves to playing in, and for, South Africa, they are now facing the same financial conundrum that existed in the early 2000s when rewards were so overwhelmingly weighted towards playing overseas that many felt they had no alternative.     It’s not just the likes of established internationals like Kyle Abbott and Rilee Rossouw – they were offered the security of four-year contracts amounting to more than they could have earned for the rest of their careers in SA, even if they played international cricket on a regular basis.     If the contracts awarded players in the Global League draft had been honoured, over 120 players would have earned between 200 and 500% of their provincial...
Boje relives schoolboy days
October 21, 2016 by devneilmanthorp
Nicky Boje has always been a batsman. Some people who watched his brilliant century in the first NZ one-dayer may be surprised. Unlike those unfortunate players who need to 'prove' it, however, poor old Nicky's problem has always been to make people REALISE it! Those 'priviledged selectors' who watched him bat at number four or five in the SA Schools side of 1989 or 1990 were unilaterial in their opinion that Nicky was a man (make that a batsman) capable of playing for South Africa and yet cricketing fate conspired to turn him into a left arm spinner. The country has always lacked spinners so, at schoolboy level, Nicky was encouraged to combine the dual role of opening the bowling with his left arm seamers followed by a few 'tweakers' in the middle of the innings. "Someone had to do it!" he laughs now. His strength has always been with...
Bacher must face reality
December 15, 2000 by devneilmanthorp
With just 15 days to go before he relinquishes his position as managing director of the UCB, Ali Bacher still seems to be struggling with the realities of his imminent change of job. Operating World Cup 2003 is no problem - he's coping with that brilliantly and will no doubt do a fantastic job. It's just that he seems to be finding it extremely difficult to face the fact that he will no longer be in charge of the national board. Infact, he won't even hold an official position at the UCB. Yet, on Thursday, he was quoted in the Cape Times newspaper talking on the subject of Mfuneko Ngam: "There is no doubt that we will offer him a new contract from next year on the recommendation of the selectors." Really? Contracts are renewed at the end of March every year by which time Gerald Majola will have been...
Cricket ripe for Murdoch takeover
November 19, 2000 by devneilmanthorp
Kerry Packer's cricketing revolution changed the game forever in the late 70s and part of the reason that it succeeded (people tend to forget that it WAS a success) was that the game was ripe and ready for a takeover. It's administrators had become lazy and cricket audiences, both on television and at the grounds, were not being looked after. Test matches had become slow and draw-ridden and many other sports had started making serious inroads into the leisure-time market. There are some people who believe the game, with it's current credibility problems, is once again ripe for a takeover. And some are saying that Rupert Murdoch has already started the process. I make no promises about the authenticity of the story, but it is fascinating enough to share, so read it with as much salt as you like. 'Inter-city' cricket will comprise 12 teams playing one-day cricket for ten...
All work and all play makes SA unbeatable
October 10, 2000 by devneilmanthorp
Seldom has a South African team played with such consistent intensity as they did against England in Nairobi on Tuesday. Seldom has every bowler applied such pressure and seldom have all 11 fielders protected the boundary and saved singles with such passion. The ICC Knockout tournament is the richest in the sport's history with Shaun Pollock's squad set to return home, should they happen to win, with close to R200 000 per man. But it would be churlish at best, and insulting at worst, to suggest they were motivated by money. Far more accurate would be to suggest the combination of work and rest was perfect, leaving all 11 players feeling hard-trained but energised and keen to take the field. Three four-hour net sessions in the days before the match were followed by a day of rest on Monday during which time aching muscles were soothed but enthusiasm for the...