It was a March night time at Mirpur on the outskirts of Dhaka. Graeme Smith confronted the media with moist eyes. The first query, extra an announcement, was brutal: “They used to call you chokers earlier, now they are calling you jokers.”
The South African skipper had simply misplaced the 2011 World Cup quarterfinal in opposition to New Zealand by 49 runs whereas chasing a goal of 222, and it fitted into the template of a crew infamous for faltering within the climax. Still, that query was a knife being twisted in. Smith, with monumental restraint, spoke about why his males’s marketing campaign floor to a halt.
This story of being so shut and but up to now was repeated usually. The final stumble being the 2024 T20 World Cup final the place India prevailed over Aiden Markram’s males by seven runs at Bridgetown. South Africa gained an ICC silverware in 1998 – The Wills International Cup, which later turned the Champions Trophy, and the title drought prolonged interminably.
All these ghosts of the previous and snide remarks have been lastly laid to relaxation on an excellent Saturday when South Africa claimed the ICC World Test Championship final at Lord’s.
A five-wicket victory in a match the Aussies dominated for a big half, revealed the metal inside Temba Bavuma’s males. On the hope-metre, what Bavuma’s troops achieved is on par with the feat of Kapil’s Devils within the 1983 World Cup.
This triumph was a tribute to what Bavuma and his lead stars like spearhead Kagiso Rabada and centurion Markram achieved. Conceding a first-innings lead and nonetheless to seek out that perception deep inside is exceptional.
Equally, it was a redemption track for a Rainbow Nation that handled the spectre of apartheid, and the resultant sporting isolation, earlier than Nelson Mandela utilized the therapeutic contact whereas a rustic regained its spirit and made a sluggish comeback.
Often a sigh accompanied cricketing yarns about South Africa. The misplaced years of Graeme Pollock, Barry Richards, Mike Procter and to some extent Clive Rice. The subsequent losses in ICC occasions regardless of being a advantageous aspect. The match-fixing disaster that tainted Hansie Cronje. The checklist appeared infinite until it was time to snort aloud and welcome a brand new champion within the willow sport.
Once Shakira sang “This time for Africa” in her 2010 ‘Waka, Waka’ quantity. Bavuma and his males will maybe whisper: “This time for South Africa.” Sport gives hope. It all the time does.
Published – June 14, 2025 09:09 pm IST
