BECOME A PATRON

By Khalid Mohidin

A very special announcement that I believe will change the face of the way cricket is supported in South Africa.

Hey, guys! Welcome to Cricket Fanatics Magazine. I would like to welcome you to the first and only fan-driven Cricket publication in South Africa.

I started this venture on 1 July 2019 with a vision to get fans from all walks of life engaged with the game and the personalities in cricket.

We want to tell the untold stories of South African cricket and we want fans to be heard.

Since we started, we covered the Mzansi Super League, Women’s Super League, Proteas Men and Women International Test, ODI and T20I series, as well as school and club cricket, with the aim of providing entertaining, engaging and educational content.

But hasn’t stopped there.

We started a Monthly Magazine where we provide multi-media content, including exclusive features, opinion pieces and analysis.

This works hand-in-hand with our YouTube channel where we produce unique cricket shows that allow fans to call in and have their say. 

We have the Daily Show, which reveals all the major talking points in South African cricket.The Sunday Podcast Show where we sit back, relax and engage with the live chat, answering all the questions fans have about us and the game.

We have Off-Side Maidens, the first ever All-Women’s Cricket Show on YouTube, which helps empower women in cricket and gives them a place to share their own views on not only women’s cricket but all cricket.

We have a Legends show, where we interview all legends in cricket.

To produce all of this, we’ve invested a lot of money, time and effort to bring this to you for free.

But to keep this going we need your help. So we have opened a Patreon account.

Today, we are fortunate that technology has enabled anyone to become a patron of creative work, even if they are not a billionaire.

We have therefore launched a campaign for you as a Cricket Fan to become a patron and support us as an independent, bootstrapped publisher.

As a Patron, you also get your voice heard as a Fan.

Plus: You have the opportunity to become more engaged with the content we produce.

Every month we produce:

• Website Articles
• Video Shows
• Podcasts
• Match Previews
• Match Reviews
• Video Interviews
• And more…

So please join our Patreon today.

T Minus 1: Ready for the main event

By James King

10th June 2025 T minus 1 day and counting. 

The stage is set, the table is laid, and the die is cast. The English language seems to have an infinite number of ways to tell us that we are ready for the main event. 

The question of the players who will grace the turf at the home of cricket has been answered. Now it is up to these modern-day gladiators to face the ultimate test. The eyes of the cricketing world will be glued to the battle for the WTC Mace. 

There are many that have come from far and wide to be at this hallowed ground. Both Temba Bavuma and Pat Cummins made mention of the fans that will have made the pilgrimage to Lord’s. The great sporting rivalry of these two nations is not lost on their supporters. 

The die-hards are actors in their real-life version of Planes, Trains and Automobiles. They have winged their way from Bloemfontein and Brisbane, found an AirBnB somewhere close to a Jubilee Line station, and planned their route to the ground, not once, but many times. 

As sure as the clouds that always bedevil an English summer, the fans will be here. Thousands will take the long escalator ride up from the bowels of St John’s Wood Underground Station. Wellington Road is set to teem with green and gold, as both Saffers and Aussies surge towards the North Gate. 

As you enter the ground and walk to your seat in the Grandstand on the Western side, you will encounter the impressive Father Time wall. It is the stuff of cricketing legend. Donald Bradman, Graham Gooch, Graeme Smith, Rachel Heyhoe-Flint, James Anderson, Shane Warne… I stood there, letting this all sink in. So many famous names, so many unforgettable games. 

It makes me reflect on the ICC Hall of Fame event held at the iconic Abbey Road Studios. Did I say it was yesterday? Struggling to find additional humorous Beatles references, let me rather focus on South Africa’s two newest inductees. 

After the formalities are over, the South African journalists have the chance to speak to both Hashim Amla and Graeme Smith. Hashim and Graeme are humbled to be compared to the other greats of the game. We have no doubt that they deserve to be in this company.

The two hall-of-famers are asked about the new generation of SA Test cricketers. They have the opportunity to emulate Smith’s team in lifting the WTC Mace. The 2012 generation was extraordinary. Smith, Kallis, Amla, de Villiers, Steyn, Morkel, Philander. 

Hashim perhaps says what a lot of us are feeling about this team. He talks about the lack of experience and the comparison to the 2012 team: “ (at the) moment (the team) hasn’t had enough time to get to those numbers. (talking of test caps). Given that they haven’t played as much as a team, and if you put the experience levels together, what they’ve achieved has been amazing. Obviously, no one would have given this Proteas team a chance of getting to the final maybe a year or two ago.

But they won the matches they needed to and they won them well.” 

He is also clear on what he thinks will be the key for South Africa: “You win test matches and you win test championships based on your bowling. All great teams have a great bowling attack and fortunately, you’ve got some quality bowlers in the South African team, which has led to them being here.” 

South Africa wrestled the number one Test ranking from England at Lord’s in 2012. Amla’s 121 in the second innings and Philander’s 5/30 saw them to a famous win and a series victory. Can the class of 2025 defy the odds that appear to be stacked against them? 

With the heroes of the past resolutely behind them, and South Africans and their diaspora descending on Lord’s, Bavuma’s men will have no lack of support. 

Will their names be etched onto the walls of Lord’s? It is only Father Time that will tell…

1 more sleep…

Day 2 – The Ultimate Test

By James King

To review or not to review, that is the question. Whether ’tis nobler to refer it to DRS and suffer the slings and arrows of hawk-eye’s fortune, or to take the umpire’s decision, and by not opposing, end your innings?

The modern game so often hinges on 15 seconds. On Day 2 at Lord’s, there were four such moments. One where SA fans were given the hope that Temba Bavuma, the man who seemingly does not know if he has edged the ball, was given a reprieve. The second was where his opposing Captain, Pat Cummins, called correctly and sent Kyle Verreynne on his way.

The third was when Bavuma backed his bowler Lungi Ngidi to see the back of Steve Smith, the batter with the highest number of runs by a visiting player at Lord’s. The fourth was when Carey’s edge saved him from an early shower. All where the original decisions were reversed. 

It is at such moments that matches are decided. The collapse that followed the Verreynne dismissal saw the Proteas fall 74 runs short of Australia’s total. South Africans across the world groaned, it’s the hope that kills you…

Before the day’s play, I station myself outside the Heyhoe-Flint gate. Talking to the fans from both teams, the excitement of being at Lord’s for the WTC Final is evident. A former colleague recognises me. He stops for a chat, and tells me he has a ticket for the Mound Stand. 

It’s his first time at Lord’s. The young Aussie cricketer I approached for a chat was equally thrilled to be here. I know I have mentioned this before, but there is history everywhere at the home of cricket. 

I do a little research into the origins of the names around the ground. The Edrich, Compton, Allen and Warner stands commemorate legends of Middlesex and English Cricket. Apart from his cricket career, Bill Edrich was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in the Second World War for “courage and resolute determination” flying a Blenheim Bomber over Cologne in 1941. 

Both Plum Warner and Gubby Allen were knighted for their services to sport. Denis Compton was awarded a CBE and famously also won the FA Cup as an Arsenal player in 1950. It is only fitting that their legacy is enshrined here. 

The Mound Stand is named rather banally after the clay mound on which the original stand was designed by Frank Verity in 1898. It was rebuilt in 1987, but the 7 original brick arches remain. 

It is in these stands that the cheers go up as Cummins achieves the best-ever bowling figures by a captain at Lord’s. He finishes with 6/28, tearing the heart out of the Proteas’ first innings. The crowd is fully engaged in this enthralling contest. As Australia plunge to 66/6 in their second knock, the cries of “Olé, Ole, Olé” reverberate around the ground from the South African faithful. 

This is what they came for. The ebb and flow of test cricket, the punching and counter-punching, first one team in the ascendancy and then the other. 

As we end the second day of the Test match, the game is still in the balance. Advantage Australia, but as batter David Bedingham says of the Proteas dressing room, there is belief. It is living up to its billing as the Ultimate Test. 

Day 2 is done, day 3 awaits.

Day 4 – South Africa, Champions of the World

By James King

Saturday 14th June 2025

The Ultimate Test, Day 4

It’s exactly 12:45 BST as Kyle Verreynne flays the fourth ball of Mitchell Starc’s 15th over to the cover boundary. He raises his arms to acknowledge the deafening cheers of the South African fans inside the home of cricket.

It has been 27 long years since a senior SA team last raised an ICC trophy. Nine Thousand Seven Hundred and Twenty-two days of pain, humiliation and heartbreak. In the blink of an eye, that all seems to have been erased. 

As the final runs are scored, I gaze across from my corner of the Media Centre. There are journalists who have covered over 300 test matches that are surprisingly quiet, tears welling in their eyes. It means that much.

There can be no doubt what it means to the fans, who have come from far and wide to witness history. I take the opportunity to run down to the Edrich stand, while the Australians receive their runners-up medals. I soak in the pure joy as every Proteas player is cheered to receive their medals. 

There is a special, massive ovation for Temba Bavuma. He has led from the front on the field, playing with not only a damaged hamstring but a heavily strapped left arm. Departing the scene earlier than he had hoped on the fourth morning, he was able to watch this time as the chase unfolded. 

What a final morning it was. Playing one of the most important Test innings’ in South Africa’s history, Aiden Markram anchored the Proteas effort, and batted himself into test match folklore. 

He speaks to the media after the match, and admits that when he reached his hundred in the penultimate over of day 3, there were tears of emotion. The enormity of what he and the team has achieved is not lost on him. He admits to us that he didn’t sleep too well last night. He recalls the bitterness of defeat in the T20 World Cup Final, and tells us that he wanted to make sure that he was there at the end this time. 

His Player of the Match performance took his band of brothers to within 6 runs of victory. It was the Wynberg High old boys that finally took them home. David Bedingham playing a crucial part in the last stanza of the game. 

“The fans have been through thick and thin, so it’s just as special for them,” Markram says. This is echoed as I get the chance to chat to the long-suffering supporters. The emotion is clear, the relief tangible. There is not only a weight that has been lifted from the players’ shoulders but for every dedicated fan. “Chokers no more” could be the cry. 

World Champions has a great ring to it. All those I speak to on their way out of Lord’s have a massive smile on their faces. They formed part of a crowd in excess of 20,000 who made their way to Lord’s today for one session. “They want to be here” comments the BBC’s cricket commentator. Indeed. 

Being here is not just about raising the roof for the first Markram boundary on the fourth morning. It is about recognising what this could mean for Cricket, for South Africa. Sporting success on the global stage transcends sport itself in our unique country. This is not lost on Keshav Maharaj, as he is in tears talking to Graeme Smith. The magnitude of what this team has achieved may not sink in for a while. 

As the stands at Lord’s now lie still, the strains of “Shosholoza” echo in my head.  I keep hearing the chant of “Oooooh Temba Bavuuuumaa” as my eyes sweep across the home of cricket. Today, for a few wonderful, magical hours, Lord’s belonged to all South Africans. 

The team, and all those associated with their success, are still in the home changeroom on the left of the famous pavilion. They deserve to savour this moment. In the time-honoured format that defines cricket, they have passed the Ultimate Test. 

South Africa, Champions of the World.

South Africa pen new chapter in their Cricket History

After 9722 days, the wait is over. The Proteas Men have secured the ICC World Test Championship at Lord’s on Saturday, as they defeated Australia by five wickets, on day four of the Final.

It ended a 27-year wait for ICC success, as this was the first senior Men’s trophy since the 1998 ICC Knockout victory.

In many ways, the victory by captain Temba Bavuma was not just for this generation, but for all those who have played their part in the Proteas jersey. Various former players were present at Lord’s and shared in the delight of seeing their team on top of the world.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) Chief Executive Officer Pholetsi Moseki led the congratulations for the team, paying tribute to the team’s character and all those who have supported them on the journey.

“I can’t think of a team more deserving of this WTC Mace. This team has displayed remarkable tenacity and strength over the past two years,” Moseki noted.

“This occasion holds immense significance in the world of sport and cricket. It is a tribute not only to the current squad, but also to those who paved the way before them.”

Moseki also pointed out that this victory belonged to the team, legends, the people of south Africa and all those inspired to take up the game by this remarkable victory.

When Kyle Verreynne struck the winning runs, it sparked wild celebrations for the team and their strong showing of support at Lord’s. A hallmark of all four days has been the distinctly South African flavour around the ground, with songs, flags and national jerseys prominent in the stands.

The team has also been overwhelmed by constant messages of encouragement from back home, especially during a match where the momentum swung wildly over the first two days.

Australia was bowled out for 212 in the first innings, after Bavuma had invited them to bat. Kagiso Rabada’s five for 51 earned him the distinction of being on both the home and away dressing-room Honours boards.

The Proteas were then bowled out for 138, with David Bedingham (45) and Bavuma (36) making key contributions in tough batting conditions.

That left the Proteas with a deficit of 74 runs, on a difficult pitch.

Lungi Ngidi, back in the team after injury, broke the game wide open with an inspired spell on the second evening, as he helped himself to three for 38, including the prize scalp of Steve Smith.

Bowling spearhead Rabada (four for 59) then completed a magnificent personal performance with the ball, but Australia’s tail added crucial late runs to tally 207 in their second innings.

Man of the match Aiden Markram struck a majestic 136, marking his eighth Test century, and his fourth against Australia.

His six-and-a-half-hour marathon was the cornerstone of the success, and he was ably supported by Bavuma, who scored 66 from 134 balls. What made the captain’s knock even more impressive was that he was hampered by a hamstring strain for most of his stay at the crease.

He and Markram put together a priceless stand of 147 in just over three hours, taking the Proteas to the brink of a new chapter of South African cricket history.

Both fell on the final morning, but the Proteas and an incredible display of support away from home could not be denied a day to remember at the Home of Cricket.

CSA Director of National Teams and High Performance Enoch Nkwe commended the team for their unwavering commitment.

“This moment is a reminder that no dream is too distant, no challenge insurmountable and no legacy too heavy to carry forward,” Nkwe saluted.

“I commend the unwavering commitment demonstrated by each player, both on and off the field. Reaching this milestone, coupled with remarkable key performances, will undoubtedly be etched into the history books,” Nkwe added.

Indeed, it is an eighth consecutive Test victory for Bavuma and his team, notched on four different continents. It is a testament to their adaptability and character, and collective talents that have found a solution for every question thrown at them over the past two years of the WTC cycle.

That adaptability is emphasised by a look at each of the men in the squad for the WTC final. Every one of them had a telling contribution on the road to glory, each man earning their winning medal.

While breaking the ICC drought is justifiable cause for celebration, this team is determined to ensure that the road doesn’t end with this final. Indeed, much like London buses, they are keen to ensure that after the long wait for an ICC trophy, two arrive in quick succession.

The ICC ODI World Cup, to be hosted in South Africa, is now less than two years away. Many of the men who did duty on the road to Test glory also form the foundation of coach Shukri Conrad’s white-ball plans.

For now, however, the squad will celebrate this breakthrough moment and then return home to South Africa on Wednesday at 09:25 SAST.

“The next time we see Shukri and his team, we will welcome them as the ICC World Test Champions!” Nkwe declared.

Before that welcome, the team may well have to pass through O.R Tambo International Airportcustoms, so that they can declare a rather significant piece of international history that they are bringing back into the country.

The Ultimate Test, the day after 

By James King

Sunday 15th June 2025

It’s about 6pm as I get up from my seat to say my farewell to Lord’s. The World Champions are still in their changeroom. The celebrations will go on well into the night. It’s a day that one hopes will never end.

The cladding on the grandstands is being removed. The forklifts are busy shuttling away pallets of refuse and equipment as I exit the Media Centre lift and make my way towards the North Gate. Lord’s has already moved on, another historic chapter having been written inside its time-honoured walls.

The South African flag flies even more proudly amongst those of the other test-playing nations at the back of the Compton Stand. I take a picture. Earlier that day, underneath it, hundreds engaged in an impromptu singing of our National Anthem. The flag of the champions, the flag of 60-odd million people, the flag of the thousands who made their way across continents and countries to be at Lord’s. Our flag, my flag. On this historic Saturday in June, it is a reminder once again that our triumph is in our togetherness.

I come across the groundstaff playing an impromptu game of cricket next to their offices. As the assigned wicketkeeper chases his toddler across the tarmac, I take up station behind the stumps. Emma, the heavy roller driver, is bowling. The first ball beats the outside edge and I manage to field it. The third delivery is similar to Starc’s bail-trimmer, which dismissed Test cricket’s only Tristan only hours before. It pings the bollard pillar stump. The fingers go up from about six umpires. They hand the middlesex county cricket logo bat to me. It’s a kind gesture. I see that many of them are wearing Australian practice cricket kit, and I am heartened by this unnecessary but important kindness.

I walk past a straight one and am stumped. It’s time to go. I gather my backpack and walk out for the last time, thanking the stewards as I depart. There is one last glance back across the nursery ground to the spaceship that has been my temporary home for the last few days.

Inside are most of the South African journalists who have made the trip to London. They are finishing their description of the Ultimate Test. Their chance on a sunny London afternoon not only to put painful history to rest, but to celebrate what seems like the start of a new beginning for South African cricket.

At least 3 of these scribes were in Barbados in 1992 for the first post-isolation test match. A matter of 33 years later, we are many worlds away from where South Africa was then as a nation. Only 3 of the squad at Lord’s were alive when Kepler Wessels took his team to the Caribbean. The group of players and their support staff at Lord’s represent so much that we didn’t have then. Unity, Inclusivity, Togetherness, Hope, Belief.

The words above permeate the deluge of social media posts I have scrolled through since Scholesy and Bedders saw us home. They may not be overtly written or said, but they are somehow omnipresent.

I can perhaps allow myself one last indulgence as I reflect on what I have witnessed over the past week. I realise that I can’t really describe it in words.

What I want to do is put it in a bottle, slap a lid on it, take it home to South Africa and release it over the whole nation.

I agree, Temba, it really is that special.

Our Proteas Have Finally Come Of Age And The Future Is Bright

By Alasdair Fraser

Temba Bavuma’s history-making Proteas deserve to be celebrated as a diverse team that has grown in character, and more importantly, finally represents South Africans from all walks of life, writes Alasdair Fraser.

A first major cricketing title for South Africa, earned by winning an ICC final. That was so satisfying to type that, I have to say. Nearly 30 years of tears and drama washed away. I have always backed the Proteas and was disturbed to see that many sports lovers decided to give this Test a miss. Not me. I watched this match from the very first ball. When I went out to the shops, or a client meeting, I went armed with my son’s tablet. When Lungi Ngidi dismissed Steve Smith, I shouted so loud in the Pick n Pay aisles that the entire shop heard my screams of joy.

I watched it all and there were some fantastic individual performances from both the Proteas and the Aussies. But I stopped watching when we went into bat, chasing 282 runs on a track that gave the bowlers plenty of purchase and bag loads of wickets. I even went as far as writing them off in a facebook comment to a friend when Ryan Rickelton departed early in the run chase. I will happily eat humble pie, cold, stale, dry and well past its sell-by date.

I noticed while going out for a sundowner with the family, that everyone at our local watering hole was avoiding the big screen. We’ve been burned since 1992. Forget the 1998 Champions Trophy win or the rare times we held the ICC Test Mace. Major cup knockouts and the Proteas always end up in tears.

Well that’s changed. Finally. This team, as diverse as they are, have overcome many obstacles – not only on the field but the boardroom – and it’s indicative of this team’s spirit. It’s taken South African cricket some time to catch up with its rugby counterparts on the field. Everyone in that side deserves to be there.

If you have been on this journey since readmission, you will know exactly where I am coming from when I say that this Championship means the world to us. It’s a massive achievement. Hopefully once it sets in, most of us will celebrate this team for years to come. The heartbreak of the past will always be there, but my son and his generation will never know that heartbreak because their memories will be of what this team has achieved in the present tense.

The majority of the incredible South African fans at Lord’s know exactly the hurt and pain of past tournaments. From 1992, it’s been a tough road of tears and serious letdowns. Even South Africa’s first Test back from isolation ended in heartbreak. It almost mirrored the World Test Championship final at Lord’s with Kepler Wessels men in a commanding position to beat the feared Windies at home. We all know how that turned out.

For me there are two standouts to take from this momentous achievement: Shukri Conrad deserves every single plaudit coming his way. The manner in which he has taken a team of individuals and moulded them into a Championship-winning unit who play for each other and know that when they are called upon to step up, they do so with such aplomb and respect for each other – regardless of their diverse backgrounds.

Secondly, captain Temba Bavuma deserves to be respected for the manner in which he has led this team. A quiet leader who likes to lead from the front has all the respect in the world from every single one of his teammates. Maybe, just maybe, he has now finally earned that same respect from his biggest critics. It’s time to bury the hatchet once and for all.

Dane Paterson – Better Late Than Never

By Abhai Sawkar

The World Test Championship victory for the Proteas on Saturday was a watershed accomplishment in South African cricket. The demons of numerous what-could-have-beens were finally exorcised, thanks to a very organised team effort with both bat and ball.

This has been the story of the whole WTC campaign for SA. Over the last two years, several players have delivered impactful performances that led to key wins, especially during the later stages.

If we zero in on the bowling, Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, and Keshav Maharaj have, to a large extent, been the reason for a lot of the Proteas’ success in this cycle. And the stats back it up:

Rabada: 56 wickets in 11 games @ 18.73

Jansen: 33 wickets in 7 games @ 21.54

Maharaj: 41 wickets in 9 games @ 20.95

There’s never been a shadow of a doubt that the three talismanic linchpins have spearheaded many a dominant performance, but there were a few others that didn’t quite go under the spotlight.

For instance, Lungi Ngidi played only three games in this WTC, including the final. He looked out of sorts in the first innings, but rebounded with three vital middle-order wickets in the second.

And another quick to fall in that category was Dane Paterson. His returns during this WTC were more than respectable: 21 wickets in 5 games @ 23.33.

Unlike his pace-bowling peers, Paterson didn’t quite have a leg up when it came to speed. He’s been a solid domestic stalwart for much of his career, with a sprinkling of games for the Proteas across all formats without really securing a spot.

2024 was the year when Paterson was reintroduced to Test cricket, and his comeback to international cricket wasn’t so auspicious. He was one of several relatively less experienced names chosen for the forgettable New Zealand tour, and this was just a couple of months prior to his 35th birthday. Cricketers in that age group are often contemplating how to eventually round off their careers, but it was a resurrection for Paterson.

The majority of the players who visited New Zealand didn’t get chosen for any of the forthcoming Test series, whether it was home or away. However, Paterson was an exception here. He made the squad for all the remaining Test series and got to play again in the second Test against Bangladesh. But that wasn’t the game where he created a splash; rather, it was at home against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, where he took two 5-wicket hauls. His efforts ensured that SL wouldn’t completely whittle down their first-innings deficit, and Pakistan wouldn’t have made a score of substance in their first innings.

In a way, many of us can relate to how Paterson’s international career has gone. He began in the short formats in 2017 and played 12 games until the 2019 World Cup. His Test debut took place during an unsuccessful series against England, just before the COVID pandemic hit. Thereafter, he played three full seasons of county cricket for Nottinghamshire as their main overseas pro, and that would soon pave the way for a second chance at international cricket. He did slightly benefit from some familiarity, as Shukri Conrad – the current Proteas head coach – had overseen his development during his earlier cricketing days, but there’s never a shadow of a doubt that he put in the hard yards for higher honours.

With all things considered, only a small percentage of people have what it takes to reach the apex of the game and maintain elite consistency for several years, while others have to proactively find ways to make even a small amount of headway. Even though Paterson didn’t make the confirmed XI for the WTC final, he was still chosen ahead of younger fast bowlers due to his status as a seasoned professional with experience in various conditions. Ultimately, his persistence and perseverance were rewarded. On many occasions, good things come to those who wait, and it applied to both Paterson and the Proteas team.

Now that he’s 36 and a new WTC cycle is underway, there’s more than a genuine chance that his involvement in the Test squad could come to a stop right here. In fact, the pace attack chosen for the upcoming series against Zimbabwe has more young rookies raring to go. It might not be part of the next WTC, but the selection plan is a clear indicator of the trajectory of where the Test team will be headed over the next two years.

Regardless, that makes Paterson’s return all the more remarkable. It all began when he answered an SOS call on short notice for the New Zealand series, and he cashed in on the handful of opportunities from that point onwards. Furthermore, he’s one of a handful of players who stayed true to the longer format of the game, while many others from his country were in demand in the franchise universe. Believe it or not, to add more context, he has never played a game in the SA20.

The superstars all got the appreciation they deserved, but this WTC win is for every player who took part in the tournament in some capacity. Paterson’s story typifies the never-give-up attitude that’s so ingrained in SA cricket. 2023 and 2024 were close finishes, but 2025 was the year when the job was done.