Duminy’s a busy man this week
IF JP Duminy thought he was going to get some well-deserved rest after a hectic Test tour to Australia the Proteas star was very much mistaken.
In between playing for both the Cape Cobras and the Proteas this week, the classy lefthand batsman will be fulfilling obligations to his JP21 Project down at Bergvliet High School.
The latter might seem insignificant to some, especially with the Cobras chasing a place in the T20 Challenge playoffs, but that is what separates Duminy from most professional sportspeople.
Duminy hails from Strandfontein, went to school in Grassy Park, and his mom still lives in Ottery.
He’s a man of the community and the people and is acutely aware of the challenges young people face on a day-today basis.
It is for this reason that he also attaches a great deal of value to the Nelson Mandela Legacy Cup, which the Proteas and Springbok rugby stars will be playing for on Thursday at Newlands.
“Yes … it’s a lot of fun getting out on the park with the Bokke and we all have a good time, but there’s a lot more to it than that.
“We’re playing in honour of the great man, Nelson Mandela, because we all know if it wasn’t for his tremendous sacrifices we would never have got the opportunity to play on the international stage we play on now and live the lives that we do,” Duminy told Independent Media at the Newlands nets yesterday.
“It’s an opportunity for us to repay in a small way the pathways that were opened for us to live our dreams and hopefully make some money for the Nelson Mandela Charity in order to give more children the opportunity to realise their dreams.
“It’s our motto at the JP21 Project too, where we can hopefully try and make a positive impact on the lives of the youth.” Duminy missed out on the last Nelson Mandela Legacy Cup match back in 2014 at the Wanderers as he was still recuperating from a long-term Achilles injury.
He did, however, find himself behind the microphone on commentary duty – a position he found a lot more comfortable than when he played wicket-keeper for Proteas in the Festival of Cricket clash against the Boks at Newlands in 2013.
“Hahaha … I actually enjoyed the commentary stint. It might be something I look into when my playing days are done,” Duminy said.
“It’s a good thing we’ve got Mangi (Mangaliso Mosehle) though behind the stumps for this game. I thought I wasn’t too bad, but the guys chirped me a bit afterwards, so I’ll probably stick to bowling and fielding, although I have been catching okay of late so maybe I’ll relieve Mangi for a bit.”
Cape Cobras coach Paul Adams will certainly hope Duminy does not exert himself too much for he is certainly going to need the 32-year-old at his peak in three crucial T20 Challenge matches this week.
The Cobras play the Knights today at Newlands before travelling to Port Elizabeth to face the Warriors on Friday. This is followed with a virtual decider on Sunday against the Highveld Lions on Sunday at Boland Park.
Only three wins from the three starts will give the Cobras any hope of reaching the playoff and South Africa’s highest run-scorer in T20 Internationals will certainly have a big role to play in the outcome of those matches.
“I know what’s at stake for the Cobras and I’ll go out there and give it my best. I’ve always enjoyed playing in the blues and with Wednesday’s match being at Newlands makes it extra special.
“I always enjoy playing in front of the faithful and hopefully I can contribute to the team getting over the line,” he said.
“My gameplan is always to try and keep it simple as possible. It might only be 20 overs, but there is enough time to give yourself a sighter before expressing yourself. I’ve worked on different things to give myself various options to score all around the wicket while most importantly keeping my balance.”