Steyn set to put Canberra on the map with milestone
“CANBERRA: Why wait for death?” Bill Bryson once wrote. Harsh? Certainly. But then many Australian’s agreed with it – at least those not based in the country’s capital city.
Sydney has Bondi, many beaches, an Opera House and a bridge. Melbourne has a sexy and sophisticated art scene. Adelaide has the picturesque River Torrens. And Canberra? Err ...
For a while the best part of the place was the vibrant porn industry – the Australian Capital Territory local laws allowed for the legalising and regulating of the sex industry. The place takes it name from an Aboriginal word loosely meaning ‘women’s breasts’ – on account of it being situated between two mountains which … well you get the drift.
It’s where politicians worked and “who bloody well cares about anything that lot get up to”. However Canberra is starting to win over the Aussies too – slowly.
As it’s gradually taken on its mantel as Australia’s capital city – it is just over 100 years old but much the development only took place after World War 2 – it has grown to house some of the nation’s important national monuments and institutions.
The National Archives, National Library, the National Film and Sound Archive, the Australian War Memorial and the National Museum are all located here.
There’s an artificial lake – Lake Burley Griffin which is popular with runners and cyclists – and a burgeoning fine dining scene and some colourful nightlife.
Still though in comparison with Sydney and Melbourne, the South African team’s previous stops on their World Cup journey, Canberra is rather docile. The ‘White Night’ art festival in Melbourne and Mardi Gras in Sydney, weren’t being matched here. The team upon arriving here Saturday night went straight to the SA High Commissioner’s house for an engagement.
For the rest, they have, as Farhaan Behardien mentioned yesterday, enjoyed floating under the radar after a hectic couple of weeks in Australia’s two largest cities. “I think we like the fact that it’s a bit quieter, there’s not a lot of hype around. We’ve enjoyed settling into Canberra,” Behardien said.
Today’s Pool B match between South Africa and Ireland is the final World Cup match to be hosted here, putting the cap on a busy summer for the Manuka Oval. Today also sees Dale Steyn,
play his 100th ODI – although it’s his 98th for South Africa (who else remembers those enthralling fixtures between an Asia XI and an Africa XI in 2005?) – and while he may have wanted some more glamorous surrounds for such a momentus occasion, he nevertheless will be able to appreciate the effort that Canberra has put in to make the World Cup memorable.
To have played just 100 matches in 10 years is a relatively low figure these days given the proliferation of One-Day matches but it speaks to the way in which Steyn has been managed since he burst onto the international scene in 2004. He will become the 19th South Africa to reach 100 caps.
Steyn has had a quiet World Cup thus far, picking up just three wickets at an average of 47.66. While the likes of Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Mitchell Starc have been earning all the plaudits for their exploits, the player whose consistently been the best fast bowler in the world over the last decade seems to be biding his time ahead of the bigger matches South Africa will face later in the tournament. Steyn’s overall showing has not been bad. His pace certainly in his first spells have been good – around the mid-140km/h mark – though he hasn’t gotten the ball to swing prolifically.
Steyn has been happy to allow others in the South African attack to grab the spotlight. However he’ll be burning to make an impact soon, to let everyone know he’s around. Canberra may provide the setting.