Avid cricket fanatic Bilal Hanware shares his story of how he fell in love with the longest format.
The school holidays were always an exciting prospect for children. The length of the holiday usually meant that by January I started to feel bored with the amount of free time that I had and eagerly anticipated the start of the school year.
It was a Wednesday morning on the 2nd of January 2008 when my father decided to surprise me with a ticket to watch cricket at Newlands. I was eager to see the Proteas play as I was an avid fan of cricket and loved playing the game. I had never watched test cricket live before.
I grew up in East London where live international fixtures were few and far between and live Test cricket matches seemed to be a non-existent feature.
I entered the stadium and began to look for my block in the president’s pavilion which would later become my favourite seating area in the stadium. I climbed the stairs and walked into the stands. I had never seen a more picturesque view before. Table Mountain, slightly visible to my left, was a jaw-dropping sight. The outfield looked pristine.
Makhaya Ntini stood in the distance at the top of his run-up… He ran in to bowl and narrowly missed the outside edge of the “Universe Boss” Chris Gayle. The one half of the crowd roared with excitement and the other let out groans at the sight of Gayle’s narrow escape.
The Newlands atmosphere was unlike anything I had ever experienced. Despite being a Wednesday morning, the stadium was already at near capacity, the crowd buzzing all around. I fell instantly in love with the format and would return for the remaining days of the Test match. I braved the weather on the final day of the Test match and waited eagerly for the rain to dissipate.
Umbrella in hand, I waited for hours until the rain finally abated and the covers eventually came off. The West Indies were bowled out for 262 and the Proteas needed 185 for victory. Graeme Smith came out to bat with AB de Villiers and played an aggressive knock to put pressure on the visitors. He scored a quick 85 from 79 deliveries before being dismissed by Rawl Lewis. Kallis and Prince would eventually take the Proteas to victory.
My love for the format and the game in general subsequently grew.
I always find it to be the height of irony that the slowest and longest format of the game is undoubtedly the most exciting. A true test of mental strength, skill and fitness. Test cricket is so aptly named.
Long live the game.
Written by Bilal Hanware
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