SA sport continued its upward trajectory after the triumph of the Proteas senior men’s team over their nemeses Australia to lift the World Test Championship trophy at Lord’s in London at the weekend.
The five-wicket victory came on the heels of other resounding wins for a slew of the country’s top athletes to elevate South Africa to the pedestal of the international sporting scene.
The SA senior men’s rugby team have been blazing a trail on the world stage with back-to-back World Cup triumphs, with boxing following suit.
Duncan Village’s Phumelela Cafu caused an international upset when he beat world champion Kosei Tanaka to lift the WBO junior-bantamweight crown before he was joined by Johannesburg’s Kevin Lerena, with two SA boxers holding universally-recognised world titles after he was installed as the WBC bridgerweight king.
Though Lerena’s coronation was rather muted compared to Cafu’s, due to him becoming a champion via email instead of winning it in the ring, SA celebrated yet another sporting milestone.
While the entire team deserves plaudits, one could not help but rejoice more for Bavuma and Kagiso Rabada who faced added pressure
The SA senior women’s soccer team, Banyana Banyana, also added another layer to the country’s success by romping to the Wafcon triumph, with their U20 brothers following suit when they beat Morocco for the similar accolade.
In between, the SA relay team did wonders at the World Athletics Relays in China where they won gold and bronze medals.
While no-one should juxtapose the achievements of the teams, it is worth noting that such honour has consistently evaded the Proteas, with the “chokers” tag resurfacing with each major event flop.
Going to the Australia clash, not even their staunchest supporters believed they could pull it off as the series appeared to follow a similar script in the early stages.
The chokers tag has hung heavy on the country’s cricketers since 1999, so much so that even with the Proteas needing only 69 runs to win at the start of day four and with eight wickets in hand, many still fancied Australia to defend their crown.
Captain Temba Bavuma confirmed that while they were batting, they could hear the Aussies using the dreaded word to unsettle them.
But they turned the snide remarks into motivation to dig themselves out of the hole and galloped to the finishing line.
While the entire team deserve plaudits, one could not help but rejoice more for Bavuma and Kagiso Rabada who faced added pressure going to the championship.
Bavuma’s leadership has constantly been questioned, with every Proteas capitulation blamed on him.
And Rabada went to the series with a doping cloud hanging over his head following his recent failed test of a recreational drug.
But he had the last laugh when he finished the final with match figures of 9/110, that included a first innings five-wicket haul — his second at Lord’s.
Who can say SA teams are not a bunch of winners?
Daily Dispatch
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