A second One Day International (ODI) clash between Proteas and Pakistan women on Saturday at the Kingsmead Stadium in Durban was equally rated as an extravaganza showdown, writes Thathe Msimango.
Stalwart Shabnim Ismail celebrated a milestone achievement reaching a century of matches since making a debut in 2007. And Cricket South Africa( CSA) and Momentum launched their Black Day campaign in a fight with Gender-Based Violence( GBV).
In the end, it was a nail-biting clash as the Proteas claimed a 13-run victory to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. The star of the day was Marizanne Kapp who scored her 9th half-century to finish with a top score of 68. Before taking three wickets.
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But the come back of Ayabonga Khaka was welcomed by Proteas as she took four scalps. Speaking about Black Day, Carel Bosman, a Head of Events and Sponsorship at Momentum was ecstatic to see the campaign roll into action. He believes it will play a significant role in educating the public to fight against the abuse of women in the country.
“Our plan as Momentum was to launch the campaign last year but Covid-19 derailed our plans,” said Bosman
“The abuse of women in the country is something that we must fight against. As momentum, we always value women in sports, and that’s why we have been with Proteas since 2012.
“At the end of the day, it’s not about the physical abuse we also fighting about but inequality in sports. The time we started to sponsor the Proteas back then there were no players with contracts.
“But look at how things have changed since we have entered the partnership. Still a long way to go to but we still have important plans for them in the future.”
Bosman is hoping that the next time Black Day happens there will be fans inside the stadium, as much as or more than the support the Proteas get for Pink Day.
“We hope to see Black Day grow in support like Pink Day. Sports with fans inside the stadium next year would mean more people can support this wonderful initiative.
“As the people of South Africa, we must fight against the abuse of women. And the reason we used sports, is because it attracts the mass of people.”
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