Dear Editor,
South Africa finally shook off the albatross that had burdened its cricket for years. It is no secret that the team couldn鈥檛 cross the finish line after reaching the finals in a number of ICC events. But this was put to rest two Saturdays ago at Lords, as South Africa defied the odds, and beat Australia in the finals of the World Test Championship.
The overflow of emotions at Lords tells a story beyond the dry statistics of the scoreboards. It says that the founding fathers of the game had it right when they said that Test cricket is the ultimate test. It is a test of strategy, character and will. It is a test of perseverance, fitness, and sportsmanship. In the different shortened variations of the game (T10, T20, ODI) there is nothing to rival the finesse and artistry of Test cricket.
There were calls in its formative stages for more excitement in Test cricket. Many touring teams failed to win a series in the host countries and there were even suggestions for schedules to be revised. England and Australia played a Test for the first time in 1877. South Africa played its first Test match in 1889 and England won both matches. These were the three nations that played at the time with all white teams. One of the most famous victories for West Indies came in 1950 when it beat England at Lords. By 1960, Test cricket worldwide was in the doldrums. The strong teams, Australia, England and South Africa, continued to dominate. But the fans wanted to see something different. Donald Bradman called on the West Indies and Australia to produce something exciting. The result was the first Tied Test at Brisbane. The 1960-61 series in Australia saw some of the most exciting cricket in memory and Frank Worrell and his team walked off as cricket gladiators.
The other cricketing countries India, Pakistan and New Zealand were catching up quickly. One of the greatest challenges to Test cricket occurred during apartheid in South Africa. The 1969-70 Australian tour to South Africa has been described as 鈥榦ne of the greatest in the history of cricket.鈥 South Africa won that series 4-0 with many players becoming household names, including Barry Richards, Mike Procter, Graeme and Peter Pollock, and captain Ali Bacher. As it turned out, this was the last official tour to South Africa. Ali Bacher arranged a number of rebel tours that included players from the West Indies but the world did not recognize them.
The D鈥橭liveira affair led to the cancellation of the English tour to South Africa in 1969 and placed apartheid in the headlines. Two years earlier, Peter Le Roux, Minister for the Interior, made South Africa鈥檚 position clear. He said, 鈥淥ur policy is clear. We will not allow mixed teams to play against our white teams here.鈥 Basil D鈥橭liveira was a coloured cricketer who was born in South Africa, played for England, and was picked by the MCC to represent England in South Africa. This ran counter to apartheid. England cancelled the tour and this led to South Africa鈥檚 exclusion from international sport.
In the years that followed there was a campaign to attack apartheid and to continue to exclude South Africa from international sport. In 1977, Commonwealth leaders ratified the Gleneagles Agreement 鈥榯o discourage contact and competition between their sportsmen and sporting organizations, teams or individuals from South Africa.鈥 The mantra of the critics of apartheid was that there should be multi-cultural teams, drawn up from the different segments of the society. There was another powerful symbol that reinforced the sports boycott. It was the Free Mandela Movement. The campaign to free Nelson Mandela from prison took off globally in the eighties. The Anti-Apartheid Movement called for sanctions against South Africa. This was wide-ranging from culture to academic and investment and sports.
Nelson Mandela was freed from prison in 1990. He became president of South Africa four years later. The ban on cricket was lifted in 1991, and in that year, South Africa played a one-day international against India. In 1992, South Africa toured West Indies and played four matches. They were well set to win the Barbados Test before Ambrose and Walsh took charge of the game. Thus began a procession of South African losses in major tournaments. They lost ten of their twelve knockout matches in both ODI and T20 World Cups. In the 2003 ODI World Cup, South Africa was knocked out of the tournament due to a mis-interpretation of the Duckworth-Lewis method. In 2022, it lost to the Netherlands in the Super 12 stage. Many fans felt that South Africa did not have the courage to cross the finish line; it would forever remain the bridegroom.
But South Africa was keen to rid itself of the 鈥榗hokers鈥 tag. How long could it go on losing from a winning position? Then came the World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle. South Africa qualified for a spot at Lords by beating India. It also played against New Zealand, West Indies, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. It secured a spot at Lords when it defeated Pakistan at Centurion. But given its reputation, and Australia鈥檚 dominance, the scribes made South Africa the underdog. Would it lose from a winning position again?
As the events proved, South Africa went on to win at Lords and to stun its detractors. There was more, however, to the victory. In plural societies such as South Africa and the Caribbean, sports play a role beyond the confines of the pavilion. Temba Bavuma, the South African captain, understood this role and he explained it well. He said, 鈥渢he victory provides a chance for national unity and celebration. It serves as an inspiration to the country, demonstrating that with passion and a relentless spirit, seemingly impossible goals can be achieved.鈥 In fact, 鈥榙oing it for the country鈥 was reinforced by every speaker in the team.
It is rare to find a cricket philosopher in a captain. Sir Frank Worrell, like Temba Bavuma, was the first Black captain of his country. He saw cricket as a tool for national unity and wanted a strong West Indies team to work for a collective identity. His vision extended beyond cricket, and as a member of the Jamaican Senate, he became a symbol of unity and inspiration. His legacy was inherited by Garfield Sobers, Rohan Kanhai, Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards, who in their own ways fought against insularity. A captain that inspires is badly lacking in West Indies cricket.
Bavuma, like Worrell, may one day enter politics and fight for 鈥極ne South Africa.鈥 However, there can be little doubt that South Africa鈥檚 long march to glory was sealed at Lords in 2025. Victory came with tremendous euphoria and fanfare. St. John鈥檚 Wood was transformed into a little South Africa. A multiracial team, and fans, celebrating with such unbridled joy would have pleased Mr. Mandela greatly.
Dhanpaul Narine