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Cricket South Africa come under pressure regarding 'whitewashing'

The background:

Racial quotas for test team clouds South Africa selection

Race relations must not be ignored as South Africa prepare for second Test against England

Former Proteas fast bowler Makhaya Ntini has revealed the pain of loneliness and isolation he experienced during his time as a national team player.

In an interview on SABC's Morning Live, Ntini spoke openly about being ostracised by his white teammates, and how Cricket South Africa unceremoniously cut ties with him as a player without the send-off reserved for other senior players.

Ntini spoke about how he was always alone and would run between the hotel and grounds to avoid the team bus.

"We would get to the stadium at the same time, I would bowl to them, we would wear the same clothes and sing the same national anthem. I had to find a way to overcome those things. I had to find a way, and that way turned out to be the best weapon in my life," Ntini said.

"I would go to the driver of the bus early in the morning, and I would give him my bag. I would say to him, 'I will meet you at the ground?' I would put on my running shoes and run to the cricket ground. On my way back, I would give the bus driver my dirty clothes and say, 'I'll see you at the hotel'. I would run all the way back to the hotel."

Ntini (43) said he couldn't speak out about it at the time.

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Kruger spoke on SABC news about not playing in Australia in 2008-09 where he said he "did not feel like it was a welcoming environment within the team", and blamed Graeme Smith and Boucher for sidelining him. Tsolekile made a similar accusation about Smith and Boucher, who he said along with AB de Villiers, prevented him from playing in 2012. Herschelle Gibbs, in his 2010 autobiography, To the Point, was the first to call out a Smith-Boucher-Jacques Kallis-de Villiers clique that he claimed controlled South African cricket. Prince has tweeted several threads about the issue, most recently saying he perceived a "resentment" from Smith towards him.

All that is important because of the positions Smith and Boucher hold today. Smith, as CSA's director of cricket, is essentially the country's most important cricket man and he has been in the thick of it. He has faced questions over his commitment to transformation from his first few weeks in the job. But he has spoken in support of the BLM movement and said he wants to "ensure that young black African players are given the opportunity that they deserve to reach the highest levels in all areas of the game". He has defended himself against the allegations from Tsolekile and reiterated his desire to be part of the solution. He's also said he was "unaware of" and "surprised" by the stories Ntini had told, even if might be difficult to believe any white South African can claim to be unaware of what was going on. Smith speaks as someone who is privileged; privileged enough not to have had to think about being the other in a professional team. More recently he said he understood those who felt frustrated by lack of opportunity, and argued the instances could be broken into two categories: "racial discrimination and the nature of competitive sport".

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