Behind the rich history of black cricket players in SA
Local historians are championing the rich history of black cricket players in SA. It’s a story we should all know about
When Temba Bavuma reached his 100 runs at Newlands against England on an early January afternoon in 2016 it was a landmark in a cricket tradition that went back 150 years. It was as if the first black SA batsman to score a Test century was carrying a torch for his Xhosa forebears who had been forgotten and their history written out of the game. Over the past two years that history has been resurrected in Cricket and Conquest (2016) and now Divided Country. The books are largely the efforts of cricketer-historian André Odendaal, with Krish Reddy, Christopher Merrett and Jonty Winch batting with him in an innings that has lasted four decades. Two more volumes, Batting for Freedom and Correcting the Record, are still to come to complete The History of SA Cricket Retold. The four books, for the first time, cover all cricket in SA from 1795 to 2016 and acknowledge the most neglected part of the history: games played by black Africans. The books debunk ancient myths about black people not...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.