There is a beautiful French proverb, ‘Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose’, which when translated to English means ‘The more things change, the more they stay the same’, something we are all well versed with and perhaps relate to time and again throughout our lives.
Well, this phrase also holds true for a certain South African team, who across the last three decades has seen their personnel change countless number of times albeit what has remained the same is their lack of ICC silverware since 1998, when they laid their hands on the inaugural Champions Trophy.
Generations of greats like Shaun Pollock, Jacques Kallis, Graeme Smith, Makhaya Ntini, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn, and many others have delivered stellar performances for the Proteas—yet, despite their brilliance, they’ve never had the opportunity to celebrate an ICC title of real significance.
A tough pill to swallow, if you are a fan of the Green and Gold, wouldn’t you agree?
Well, no more as a couple of days ago, the fate of the Proteas changed for the better as they ascended to the very pinnacle of the toughest format in cricket, the 5-day game when they convincingly overcame a resilient Australian side in the all-important World Test Championship final enroute to winning an ICC Trophy after a gap of 9722 days.
Let this sink in!
With able contributions from each and every player, South Africa was finally able to break their trophy drought as a massive Protea fan base at Lord’s, the Mecca of Cricketimmersed themselves in tears of joy, when the winning run was scored.
Undoubtedly an occasion which perhaps in time would be etched in the annals of cricketing folklore!
So, how did the determined Proteas make this possible? And who were their heroes who truly epitomised the ‘never say die’ attitude this time around?
Let’s dive into this:
Bowling first, Rabada set the tone with a 5-for
When captain Temba Bavuma won the toss on an overcast morning, he undoubtedly hoped his quicks would strike early to justify his decision.
Well, the Protea spearhead, Kagiso Rabada answered his captain’s call as he got Usman Khawaja early when the Aussie opener was beautifully caught at second slip by David Bedingham, trying to fend to a delivery that left him.
This spark was enough to ignite the fire within KG as he would go on to destroy the Australian batting line up taking four more crucial wickets and skittling the former WTC Champions for all of 212.
The Proteas in reply were also rather inept with their batting efforts, folding for a meek 138 as Australia had a crucial lead of 74 on a surface conducive to seam and swing.
KG had another challenge on his hands, come the second innings to ensure Australia didn’t get a massive score batting again and he certainly delivered with another 4-for, the second time around taking the crucial wickets of Khawaja, Green and Carrey.
A total tally of nine wickets saw this legend of the game etch his name on the Lord’s honours board.
Ngidi’s dismissal of Smith was the turning point
When the XI was announced for the Proteas before match day, seeing Ngidi in there was a tad bit of surprising to many cricketing pundits and to be honest even to me. Perhaps, there was good reason as Ngidi hadn’t played a Test for South Africa in 10 months and his replacement Dane Patterson had made the most of his opportunity, being essentially a swing bowler.
Undoubtedly Dane was better suited to the English conditions that were adept to swing albeit Lungi despite being paltry in the first innings turned the match on its head the second time around when he dismissed Australia’s GOAT, Steve Smith plum leg before wicket.
What made this dismissal even more significant was Smith was the only Australian batter who had truly understood the conditions and mastered the pitch in the first innings enroute to scoring a majestic 66. Hence, a lot was expected from him and seeing him go for all of 13 in the second innings was truly a blessing for the Proteas.
Markram showed his class with a ton
When one speaks about classy batters who are perhaps very easy on the eye in the modern era, a name that unquestionably comes to mind is that of Aiden Markram.
This especially against Australia, that his seen this tall right hander already mount two centuries with a career best of 152 amid his totally tally of seven tons.
Well, a third against the same opposition and an eighth overall was witnessed in South Africa’s second innings as Markram was the corner stone for the Proteas to chase a rather steep target of 282 on not one of the best pitches for batting.
Having been dismissed for no-score in the first innings, Aiden had a lot to prove and curbed his natural aggressive style of play to perhaps mount the best Test knock he has played to date with the 136 which made the hope of winning an ICC title a reality not only for him but also the millions of Mzansi supporters back home.
Captain Bavuma became a hero on one leg
When one thinks about modern day South African sporting heroes, a name that immediately springs to mind is that of Siya Kolisi, the Springbok Rugby World Cup winning captain not on one but two consecutive occasions.
Perhaps there is good reason to have his name right up there considering he did something inspirational ‘twice’to unite a nation, coming from a previously disadvantaged background.
Well, another name that will now be remembered in the same breath is that of Temba Bavuma who himself has pulled of a miracle by leading South Africa to their first ICC title in 27 years, something greats skippers of the past in Graeme Smith, AB De Villiers and Faf du Plessis were unable to do.
Perhaps what made this feat even more special is Temba having suffered a hamstring injury in the second innings still went on to tirelessly support Markram on one leg at the other end and enroute raised his bat to a beautiful half century.
This win also saw his overall tally reach nine victories from ten games with zero losses along with eight hurrahs on the bounce for his team.
A statistic which undeniably shows what dreams are made of!
Now that the Proteas finally have a reason to call themselves the best in the red-ball game, I—as the author of this piece and a proud, lifelong South African fan—want to express my heartfelt gratitude. Not just for the joy they’ve brought to me personally, but for lifting the spirits of the 64 million strong Mzansi faithful back home, who’ve endured the bitter taste of heartbreak for far too long.
But no more. At last, South Africa’s cricketing story has turned a new page—one filled with promise, pride, and long-awaited triumph.