We’ll play again, but it won’t be the same — Faf
• Cricket, like life, is not normal anymore, says former captain who is as motivated as ever on and off the field
Playing cricket again in SA may seem a long way off; and not just because we are entering winter.
The draconian measures employed by the government have led to what the World Health Organisation described last week as a “toxic lockdown culture” in SA, in which gloom and despondency are festering.
It is entirely understandable that first-world countries can “afford” to contemplate the restarting of professional sport more than poor countries, though playing with a nation’s health and lives is equally unacceptable anywhere. But economic necessity means it has already started.
The Auckland Warriors Rugby League team play in the Australian Rugby League; the only non-Australian team. They arrived in the remote town of Tamworth three days ago, midway between Brisbane and Sydney, to begin a 14-day quarantine period before the 18-match tournament begins on May 28.
They will exist in an “eco-bubble” and will only spend virtual time with their families for months.
The English Cricket Board has invited the West Indies to spend 14 days in another “biosafe” bubble quarantining before the rescheduled first Test of three on July 8. The West Indies Cricket Board has told its players they are not obliged to tour if they are not comfortable doing so.
Sportsmen around the world are watching events unfold with fascination, and hope, including SA’s cricketers.
“It is excellent news that they are doing everything they can to start playing again, though July 8 may be optimistic,” said former national team captain Faf du Plessis.
“There are still an awful lot of obstacles to overcome and safety measure to put in place, like international travel,” Du Plessis says.
Interestingly, both the New Zealand and Australian governments issued special exemptions for the rugby league “experiment”.
“I’m in the camp that believes we should be as creative as possible, without sacrificing safety, to start playing again. Anybody hoping or expecting the game to be the same as it was before is not being realistic,” Du Plessis says.
“Cricket, like life, is not normal anymore and it won’t be for a long time. It doesn’t matter to me how much we have to change our behaviour between deliveries, are we really not going to play cricket because we can’t high-five?” he asks.
“But it is, and can still be, a game between bat and ball.
“Shining the ball with an artificial substance rather than saliva — it’s the same for both sides and it might become a new skill, so best we start getting used to the idea and prepare to become good at it rather than complaining about it,” Du Plessis says.
A 14-day quarantine period will become mandatory for teams before and probably after a series, which could mean players spending as much, if not more time training and practising among themselves than playing against the opposition.
“If there is an appetite for the game, and I believe there is, then that is what we should do. It will mean shorter series but at least we will be getting back to doing what we do,” Du Plessis says.
The former captain (and one of the country’s most successful) has had a long and glittering career which, given a decade in the Indian Premier League, has also been lucrative.
At the age of 36 and with shrewd investment acumen in preparation for the sporting “afterlife”, he does not need to play. Yet he sounds more motivated than ever and, yes, it does extend beyond the field of play.
“We are a proud and passionate sporting nation and I truly believe we can make a difference. I would like to do more with the platform that sport gives us, more to persuade generous people that they can also help.
“There is hunger in our country, soon maybe starvation, and people do know that. But there is also kindness and generosity, I have seen it. People want to help, and they will, if they know their donations are going to the right people and places,” he says.
If and when he gets his chance, Du Plessis says he will do everything in his power to be the sort of leader in real life as he was on the field, and it will be infinitely more satisfying if — and when — he makes a material difference to lives rather than just results.
In the meantime, he is working hard at home on both body and mind.
“None of us has been able to do any cricket training, just gym and fitness, so I expect everybody to turn up with [abdominal] six-packs when we do eventually get together.
“We have a huge responsibility to try to provide value for our sponsors who are all struggling during the pandemic, they are the cornerstone of the game which we will have to resuscitate, just like so many other businesses and industries,” Du Plessis says.
“As cricketers, we are used to relying on medical and security advice when we travel around the world; this is the most extreme example, obviously. But I, certainly, will do everything I can to help get the game started again because I’m certain of the good it can do if the medical scientists give us the go-ahead.”