Former Proteas bowler Makhaya Ntini believes Cricket SA should scrap the two-division domestic format and revert to franchises if the national team is to have a balanced demographic representation.
Ntini believes that several talented black cricketers in Division Two are ignored by the national selectors because it is made to be inferior to Division One.
Ntini said this while addressing the KFC mini-cricket impact study media event attended by Cricket SA top brass including chief executive Pholetsi Moseki at the Gordon Institute of Business Science in Illovo, Johannesburg, on Monday.
The event was to celebrate KFC’s 15-year involvement in cricket at the grassroots level, but the tone changed when Ntini was asked about changes he would like to make to the game.
The Mdingi Express, who became the first black player to represent SA in 1998, openly expressed frustration about the slow progress in the development of black cricketers towards inclusivity.
Division Two consists of the Eastern Storm (Easterns), Mpumalanga Rhinos (Mpumalanga), Garden Route Badgers (SWD), Northern Cape Heat (Northerns), Eastern Cape Iinyathi (Border), Tuskers (KZN-Inland) and Limpopo Impalas (Limpopo).
The majority of the players plying their trade in the division are of colour or black African.
Earlier in 2024, Proteas white ball coach Rob Walter said there was no pool of black players in the domestic structure when he was criticised for only having one black African and six players of colour — the lowest number the Proteas men’s team has taken to an International Cricket Council tournament in the last decade.
CSA has the majority of its contracted players in Division One which includes the Warriors, Western Province, Titans, Lions, Dolphins, North West, Boland and Knights.
“I honestly struggle to understand why we can’t find black cricketers. Why do we always have one or two [in the national team]?
“I retired 14 years ago, but the team still looks the same. You always have Kagiso Rabada and Temba Bavuma there. Why can’t we find others?” Ntini asked.
“Our domestic circuit has black players. CSA should go back to their old way [franchises competing without divisions].
“You find out that sometimes the black talent is in Division 2 and they are not getting the exposure of playing at a higher level to get better.
“Look, you go to Eastern Cape Iinyathi, how many black cricketers are there and how many whites are there?
“You go to Mpumalanga [Rhinos] you look how many, South West District and even Kimberley, you are going to see the talent, but it is hidden in Division Two.
“If CSA can get sponsors and return to the old way of doing things, you will never lack finding black cricketers because they are currently hidden.
“There is a saying that you can’t select from Division Two, why?
“Why can’t we select from Division Two, why can’t a Division Two player play for SA?
“Those guys [individuals] are trying to push to go to Division One, but they can’t as their teams are not good enough to qualify for Division One.
“Some of the individuals are good enough to play Division One,” Ntini said.
The legendary bowler, who took 390 wickets in 101 Test matches, highlighted that even during his playing days, African cricketers did not receive many opportunities, saying that only some like Monde Zondeki, Mfuneko Ngam, Victor Mpitsang, Loots Bosman and Lonwabo Tsotsobe ended up with international caps.
“Look at the last [T20] World Cup [in the US in June], we had one black African [Rabada]. What’s the reason? No-one can tell us.”
Ntini offered solutions, imploring CSA to consult with its SA Rugby counterparts for direction on how to get the national team more representative.
“Why not speak to [Springbok coach] Rassie [Erasmus]? Look at how many Africans they have in the team.”
DispatchLIVE
Scrap domestic system to give black cricketers fair crack at Proteas — Ntini
Talented players of colour hidden in the present setup, says former SA bowler
Image: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images
Former Proteas bowler Makhaya Ntini believes Cricket SA should scrap the two-division domestic format and revert to franchises if the national team is to have a balanced demographic representation.
Ntini believes that several talented black cricketers in Division Two are ignored by the national selectors because it is made to be inferior to Division One.
Ntini said this while addressing the KFC mini-cricket impact study media event attended by Cricket SA top brass including chief executive Pholetsi Moseki at the Gordon Institute of Business Science in Illovo, Johannesburg, on Monday.
The event was to celebrate KFC’s 15-year involvement in cricket at the grassroots level, but the tone changed when Ntini was asked about changes he would like to make to the game.
The Mdingi Express, who became the first black player to represent SA in 1998, openly expressed frustration about the slow progress in the development of black cricketers towards inclusivity.
Division Two consists of the Eastern Storm (Easterns), Mpumalanga Rhinos (Mpumalanga), Garden Route Badgers (SWD), Northern Cape Heat (Northerns), Eastern Cape Iinyathi (Border), Tuskers (KZN-Inland) and Limpopo Impalas (Limpopo).
The majority of the players plying their trade in the division are of colour or black African.
Earlier in 2024, Proteas white ball coach Rob Walter said there was no pool of black players in the domestic structure when he was criticised for only having one black African and six players of colour — the lowest number the Proteas men’s team has taken to an International Cricket Council tournament in the last decade.
CSA has the majority of its contracted players in Division One which includes the Warriors, Western Province, Titans, Lions, Dolphins, North West, Boland and Knights.
“I honestly struggle to understand why we can’t find black cricketers. Why do we always have one or two [in the national team]?
“I retired 14 years ago, but the team still looks the same. You always have Kagiso Rabada and Temba Bavuma there. Why can’t we find others?” Ntini asked.
“Our domestic circuit has black players. CSA should go back to their old way [franchises competing without divisions].
“You find out that sometimes the black talent is in Division 2 and they are not getting the exposure of playing at a higher level to get better.
“Look, you go to Eastern Cape Iinyathi, how many black cricketers are there and how many whites are there?
“You go to Mpumalanga [Rhinos] you look how many, South West District and even Kimberley, you are going to see the talent, but it is hidden in Division Two.
“If CSA can get sponsors and return to the old way of doing things, you will never lack finding black cricketers because they are currently hidden.
“There is a saying that you can’t select from Division Two, why?
“Why can’t we select from Division Two, why can’t a Division Two player play for SA?
“Those guys [individuals] are trying to push to go to Division One, but they can’t as their teams are not good enough to qualify for Division One.
“Some of the individuals are good enough to play Division One,” Ntini said.
The legendary bowler, who took 390 wickets in 101 Test matches, highlighted that even during his playing days, African cricketers did not receive many opportunities, saying that only some like Monde Zondeki, Mfuneko Ngam, Victor Mpitsang, Loots Bosman and Lonwabo Tsotsobe ended up with international caps.
“Look at the last [T20] World Cup [in the US in June], we had one black African [Rabada]. What’s the reason? No-one can tell us.”
Ntini offered solutions, imploring CSA to consult with its SA Rugby counterparts for direction on how to get the national team more representative.
“Why not speak to [Springbok coach] Rassie [Erasmus]? Look at how many Africans they have in the team.”
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