Proteas Test captain Dean Elgar has expressed strongly the need for the South African cricket supporters – and the general public for that matter – to rally behind the national outfit, especially in times of adversity.
The Proteas have undoubtedly undergone a tumultuous string of results in all formats over the last three years particularly, markedly since their fall-out from the 2019 World Cup.
Administration and their political issues and agendas had been plaguing the side and governing body over the past couple of seasons.
The Social Justice and Nation-Building (SJN) hearings – that provided the platform for past players and personnel to speak out against the array of injustices they allegedly faced – hadn’t helped the team in their prosperity either.
The SJN hearings had also put current Proteas coach Mark Boucher in the spotlight amid the Paul Adams saga – marking racism as an allegation – and that further deepened the wounds within SA cricket.
Whether all of this off-field drama had negatively affected the side is debatable, but one thing is certain, and that is the players just want to play cricket and they would always surely play to win.
“I think what’s happened of late is that the Proteas have become a very easy target for those people who sit on the couch and pass judgments and comments,” Elgar said exclusively to Cricket Fanatics Magazine.
“They don’t know what we’ve been going through behind closed doors, from a playing and group point-of-view.
“And I can tell you one thing: as a group, we’ve been working our bloody arses off to get ourselves into a position of power again, because we want to bring pride back into our badge, which was taken away, not even by the players.
“It was taken away by administrators, which kind of stuffed up our game a little bit. I won’t say a little bit, I will say a lot,” the 74-Test veteran reiterated.
The opening batsman, who plies his trade with the Titans, had not minced his words when addressing the need for the fans, in particular, to gain a broader perspective of the inner and outer workings of the national side.
“I think it’s so easy for the fans to get negative around the brand and it’s so easy [for them] to belittle and give the players shit, because of what’s going on the other side, which, naturally, will affect what’s happening on the field.
“We don’t want what’s happening to affect us on the field, but I think over time we realised that it may be playing a part – it has been playing a part for quite some time – and we are now totally not using that as an excuse; we’re now starting afresh as a group.
“We’re working hard to get back to where we think we rightly belong in world cricket.”
The 34-year-old admitted and realised that every individual was “each to their own” with regards to devising their own opinions and ideas of sporting outcomes, but that this is just what the modern age has cast upon professional sportspeople.
“People have their opinions and entitlements and they can throw it around, but that’s why I don’t have social media because I think I’d be banned off every platform if some guy had to tell me how crap I am,” Elgar quipped.
“But, each to their own, and the world has changed in a very unique way. In the end, if you want to support us, support us with love and care.
“A person who’s throwing stones and comments while sitting on the couch isn’t really a fanatic, is he? He’s more a cricket watcher and not a supporter or fan. I always like to say, ‘maybe just keep quiet’”.
