Monday’s SA20 auction didn’t only leave Temba Bavuma or Andile Phehlukwayo disappointed, it left many people shocked because it is now easy to see that we are so vulnerable and desperate to make a quick buck that we’d compromise our own identity and future, writes Ongama Gcwabe.

His shaking voice, frequent sniffles and pauses during his replies told of the depth of the wound that the Proteas white-ball captain is currently nursing. Perhaps that’s a touch too dramatic but only a few words can vividly describe how devastated Bavuma was or should I say how “disappointed” he is to miss out in the SA20 Auction. 

“I feel let down in a way. I don’t think that comes from any point of entitlement from my side,” said Bavuma. 

Many quality T20 cricketers missed out on Monday but none of them hit as hard as Bavuma’s and Phehlukwayo’s snubs. Phehlukwayo’s six years of international cricket experience, playing against the best in the world in many different conditions wasn’t enough to warrant a spot for him in the first major T20 league in his own country. 

The move to get rid of selection targets in the SA20 competition is another instance of short-sighted thinking. It illustrates an approach devoid of mindfulness of the audience as well as the people the league is made for in the first place. 

Yes, the game needs the financial benefits and our targets are definitely not appealing to everyone. The ‘everyone’ I’m referring to includes investors and some South Africans as we all know. This move unsettled me then when it was announced and it still unsettles me now because I can’t help but feel we’ve compromised ourselves in a way no country should. We compromised our own identity. 

The targets are there for a reason. Have we forgotten what the targets are there to do and why they were implemented? The fact that the SA20 won’t feature the face of South Africa’s T20 cricket is dreadful and simply shows how vulnerable and desperate we have become to make a quick buck to fix our immediate problems. 

I’m not delusional, my years in cricket media have shown me the consequences of having little to no money in our game. Division 2 teams might go through the entire season driving from province to province because we just don’t have enough money to fund their flights. Players need to pay out of their own pockets to settle cricket-related medical bills. I know all this. 

But it still feels wrong how we have capitulated in the face of financial pressure. If investors or sponsors don’t accept our targets, that simply means they’re not for us. What good will it do to have investors who don’t understand what makes South Africa South Africa? It’s no good. These snubs will have a much greater impact than the money we will make from the SA20. 

After 2019, we had an opportunity to build. Not just build, but to build the right way. We had an opportunity to be clear about who we are as a country and to accept our uniqueness as the rainbow nation. This is like the hiring of Graeme Smith, Mark Boucher & Jacques Faul in 2019 all because we needed to take ‘South African cricket to where it was in its glory days’.

We know how that was received by many South Africans, some actively involved in our game and some as spectators or supporters. These snubs have the same feel about them. It will trigger the same uproar and response. The repercussions will be a lot more difficult to deal with than it is to deal with the financial challenges we are faced with. 

Sport in South Africa will never be just about sport. Politics and race will always be in the mix. Just like how we can’t change our past, we can’t remove these two from our sport. We only need to be mindful and careful about how and when we decide to make changes in our ways. 

Of course, compromise is the name of the game. Any country that has a successful T20 competition has made some form of compromise. But South Africa compromised its future and identity which should never be allowed to happen. 

I know some of you reading this will take it as confirmation that players of colour, and black Africans in particular, need these targets to get into teams. This perspective creates a stigma against being selected that way, whereas it should be a proud moment because it is a step in the right direction. We should not forget that 30 years ago South Africa was governed by apartheid laws, laws which were deemed a crime against humanity. 

Since then, we have vouched to level the playing field across all disciplines and that includes sport. Cricket seems to be the most reluctant to keep to the commitment and the SA20 Auction was another classic example of this. It is a concerning and profound misinterpretation of what South Africa needs. We need the sport of cricket to be relevant to the majority of the country and the auction was by no means aligned with this. 

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