Cricket-Match-Special ... A forum for discussion

Whatever he thought at the time, I bet Pietersen thinks he didn’t make a bad choice, GIP. Would he be making as much money (endorsements etc. included) as a South African international as he does now playing for England? I very much doubt it. Let's not forget, he wouldn't have boosted his reputation (and his IPL value) with quite as many games against the Windies and New Zealand if he'd been playing for South Africa.

D/L wrote:Whatever he thought at the time, I bet Pietersen thinks he didn’t make a bad choice, GIP. Would he be making as much money (endorsements etc. included) as a South African international as he does now playing for England? I very much doubt it. Let's not forget, he wouldn't have boosted his reputation (and his IPL value) with quite as many games against the Windies and New Zealand if he'd been playing for South Africa.

D/L - He might feel some regret about the remarks he made as to why he left SAf because its fairly obvious they wouldn't have been true in his case. I am sure he's convinced himself he made the right choice to move to Eng though.

I reckon that at the time Pietersen left South Africa, well before his talent was widely recognised, he may well have feared that his prospects would be hampered by how he saw the selection policy at the time, GIP.

D/L wrote:I reckon that at the time Pietersen left South Africa, well before his talent was widely recognised, he may well have feared that his prospects would be hampered by how he saw the selection policy at the time, GIP.

I guess every promising youngster must have that concern lurking in the back of their minds as they try and crack the big time.

However KP made his comments against the "quota system" years later after his career was well established. Very unwise IMO (and I suspect it was just a cheap attempt to throw some mud at the SAf team captained by his old rival Graeme Smith) because it just makes KP seem like "a privelaged white boy" who'd have quite liked the bad old days of South Africa to have stuck around so that he could reap the just rewards for being just that.

GordoninPortsmouth wrote:...it just makes KP seem like "a privelaged white boy" who'd have quite liked the bad old days of South Africa to have stuck around so that he could reap the just rewards for being just that.

That’s a bit derogatory, GIP. Unless I knew differently for certain, I’d prefer to give the benefit of the doubt.

Here's another interesting article, about the only white player in South Africa's football team....

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/w ... 727686.ece

He has been bold enough to say things that others have been reluctant to say:

“The stadiums built for the World Cup should be used as the foundation for South Africa’s real national sport, football, to grow and become inclusive for all. White children here still don’t play football at school. They play rugby and cricket on manicured grounds, on grass. Nine out of 10 children here are black or coloured [mixed race] and the majority play football on dirt and scrubland. If our true national sport is football, why does it suffer from such a lack of investment?”

“Nothing’s changed. It’s an elitist race issue. In our country, if you’re black you play football at school and support football. If you’re white you play rugby or cricket at school and support one of the two.”

Now, how can cricket reach out to the black majority, if it's still being promoted as a sport for South African whites? Black kids will shun the sport, because they still see it as an apartheid sport....

mikesiva wrote:
Now, how can cricket reach out to the black majority, if it's still being promoted as a sport for South African whites? Black kids will shun the sport, because they still see it as an apartheid sport....

To change this around, SA will have to promote a changed image on a similar scale as was seen here in England when 20/20 was launched. Ntini will also have to get really involved to provide someone youngsters can relate to. As you pointed out Mike, the problem is down to cricket's own image rather than being a minority sport, an issue that afflicts a number of sports. Therefore the market is already there, it's just a matter of changing ideas and getting people involved.

Heres another article on similar topic

http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/conten ... 16310.html

Yeah, that story seems to highlight issues that are often swept under the carpet in South Africa....

Proponents of the much-criticised quota system could point to it as a reason why the quota system had to come into existence.

This particular story seems more an issue of tradition than race. Traditions don’t change overnight.

We all know what the traditions were like in SA not long ago.

And whosoever said that traditions cant be associated with race

I was, of course, referring to sporting traditions.

It is clear that since the ending of the odious apartheid regime in South Africa, their Rugby and Cricket teams have become more representative. However, the tradition of preferred sports, whatever its roots, cannot change so quickly.

I sometimes wonder if the effects of the quota system hasn't had a divisive effect on the Saffer team, that has prevented it from achieving all it can....

For esample, Kallis let out a stream of hostile invective against Duminy in the CL match between Bangalore and Cape Cobras that went beyond competitive rivalry, despite what Boucher says. It's not the first time that Kallis and Boucher have sledged Duminy. It also happened in the IPL, and it smacks of something niggling there....

Could it be that veterans like Kallis and Boucher represent the old order? And Duminy is a newbie who came into the side on the back of the quota?

mikesiva wrote:I sometimes wonder if the effects of the quota system hasn't had a divisive effect on the Saffer team, that has prevented it from achieving all it can....

For esample, Kallis let out a stream of hostile invective against Duminy in the CL match between Bangalore and Cape Cobras that went beyond competitive rivalry, despite what Boucher says. It's not the first time that Kallis and Boucher have sledged Duminy. It also happened in the IPL, and it smacks of something niggling there....

Could it be that veterans like Kallis and Boucher represent the old order? And Duminy is a newbie who came into the side on the back of the quota?

Surely Duminy has shown he is worthy of his place though. An Awesome talent and hes performances are backing that up. Was Duminy really selected because of Quotes, and if so then SA should be thankful for them, because how long would it have taken Duminy to be selected otherwise?

What was said by Kallis out of curiosity?

I believe Duminy has earned his place, as has Ashwell Prince, and Makhaya Ntini....

But who knows what resentment breeds beneath the surface?

it's hard to determine exactly what Kallis said, but it certainly wasn't friendly banter. And one of the commentators said that it wasn't the first time Kallis and Boucher were combining to get up Duminy's nose....

It just seemed to be a bit overboard, IMHO.