Player of the week: Makhaya Ntini
Aside from Allan Donald, Shaun Pollock, Jonty Rhodes and Gary Kirsten, I've never really liked any South African cricketers. They're either too mechanical, boring to watch (Kirsten qualifies on that front, but I like gritty batting. I love watching the likes of Dravid, Hussain, Atherton, Mark Richardson etc. bat) or do little else bar shooting their mouth off (Graeme Smith). But right now, I really do love watching one South African cricketer on the field - Makhaya Ntini.
He's a real bundle of energy. I've never seen him lose his temper. If he's been belted for four or six, he just gives a glare and returns to his mark almost as quickly as he ran in to bowl. If he's beaten the batsman all ends up, he ... you guessed it ... just gives a glare and returns to his mark almost as quickly as he ran in to bowl. He reminds me a lot of the way Malcolm Marshall, Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose used to react.
Recently he blew away New Zealand at Centurion and reduced Australia to 93 all out in a one-dayer.
Right now, he's probably the leading fast bowler in the world, improving every year. He has taken 74 wickets in his last 14 tests, since 2005, averaging 22.8 and a strike rate of 42.6! Telford Vice celebrates Ntini's superb performances of late.
http://cricket24x7.blogspot.com/2006/04/celebrating-makhaya-ntini.html
CricInfo profile:
Makhaya Ntini has had a fair bit to contend with during his young life. A product of the United Cricket Board's development programme, Ntini was discovered at a cattleherd in the Eastern Cape, given a pair of boots and packed off to Dale College, one of the country's best regarded cricketing nurseries. With an action consciously modelled on that of Malcolm Marshall, Ntini found himself touring Australia at the end of 1997 when Roger Telemachus failed a fitness test. He made his South African one-day debut at Perth in early 1998, bowling well in helpful conditions and his Test debut came against Sri Lanka in the same year. In 1999, however, Ntini was charged and initially convicted of rape. He steadfastly maintained his innocence and was subsequently acquitted on appeal. It was, though, a harrowing ordeal for the first black African cricketer to play for South Africa and it is to his credit that he has been able to rebuild his career. He was not chosen for South Africa again until the Sharjah tournament in 2000 where he both surprised and impressed observers with greater control than had been evident previously. He carried his Sharjah form over to the three one-dayers against Australia in April this year, again bowling impressively. Quite obviously, Ntini has bounced back from his troubles. Although he is a little short of the genuine pace of a Brett Lee or a Shoaib Akhtar, he is steadily improving and became the first South African to take ten wickets at Lord's in 2003 before devestating the West Indies in Trinidad in 2005 with 13 for 132, the best-ever match figures by a South African bowler. Finished the series against Australia at the end of 2005 with nine wickets at 29.33, including a menacing 5 for 64 in the first innings at Perth. Was forced to miss the third Test with a knee injury that restricted his bowling in the second innings at Melbourne. In the return series at home, Ntini proved a constant threat both as a wicket-taker and potential bruiser. Probing lines and a never-say-die attitude reaped him 19 wickets at 22.36 - with 6 for 100 and 4 for 78 at Johannesburg being a stand-out showing - and gave Justin Langer a warm welcome, in his 100th Test, with a first-ball clanger to the head that left him concussed. Peter Robinson April 2006
_________________________________________________
Once a "quota selection" for South Africa, Makhaya Ntini has gone on to become a team leader and one of the world's top cricketers. His hard-won status as a leading international strike bowler - as ready with a smile as with a bouncer - is far removed from his upbringing in a rural village in the Eastern Cape.
Ntini was first spotted by Border cricket development officer Raymond Booi in his home village of Mdingi. As a development officer, Booi did the rounds at the villages, introducing the young boys and men to the game of cricket, looking out for anyone with talent that might nurtured.
Ntini recalls that he was passing by one day when Booi was visiting, going to fetch cattle or horses, when he and some friends were called closer. He was given a ball and told to bowl. The results stunned Booi. Young Makhaya might have been a bit wild, but he was fast, and Booi knew he had found someone with enough raw talent to be turned into something special.
Booi arranged for Ntini to attend Dale College in King William's Town, a school well known for its sporting prowess. When he first arrived there at age 14, the budding cricket star couldn't speak a word of English. However, he took up the challenge of his new life and the opportunities it presented, and prospered.
Schoolboy success
Ntini represented Border Schools at the Nuffield Week (U19 inter-provincial) in 1994 and 1995, and in 1995 was also selected for the national age group team.
He made his first-class debut against the touring England team in November 1995, claiming Alec Stewart as his first first-class victim.
Being one of the first black cricketers to make a mark after South Africa became a democratic country in 1994, Ntini soon found himself in favour with the national cricket selectors. In January 1998 he made his one-day international debut against New Zealand on the WACA Ground in Perth. He performed superbly, sending down 10 overs and conceding only 31 runs, while claiming the wickets of Black Cap captain Stephen Fleming and wicketkeeper Adam Parore.
Two months later he made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in Cape Town, picking up two wickets in the match. Ntini was fortunate to make his debut at a time when South Africa had two world-class opening bowlers from whom he could learn - Shaun Pollock and Allan Donald, both of whom have broken the magical barrier of 300 Test wickets.
In 1998 Ntini tasted success at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur when a South African team missing some of its star players upset a heavily favoured Australian team to win the gold medal.
Things were looking good for the Border star, but life was shortly to take a big dip.
Dark days
Ntini was accused of raping a woman at the Buffalo Park Cricket Ground in December 1998. He maintained his innocence, receiving the backing of the United Cricket Board, but a shock awaited him in court. The judge delivered a verdict of guilty, and suddenly the 22-year old found himself facing a possible six years in prison.
Ntini's world was turned upside down. Not long before the tour he had been named as part of South Africa's 15-man squad for the 1999 World Cup in England. Now he was on the verge of being incarcerated, with the dreams of his career and life ruined. The United Cricket Board continued to support Ntini, but the organisation could not offer its funds to pay for his defence.
Ali Bacher came to Ntini's rescue. He contacted a friend of his who lived overseas and asked him whether he would consider providing money for Ntini's legal fees. The friend agreed. On appeal, Ntini's conviction was overturned, and he walked out of court a free man with a new lease on life.
Ntini returned to the national team a more focused, fit and enthusiastic player. He continued learning from Donald and Pollock, refining his game, and in November 2000 he finally delivered a breakthrough performance.
In the spotlight
Facing New Zealand in the first Test in Bloemfontein, all eyes were on Allan Donald as he chased his 300th Test wicket. He duly claimed it, dismissing Shayne O'Connor.
However, Ntini stole the spotlight from Donald with his performance in the Black Caps' second innings. Showing tremendous stamina, he sent down 31.4 overs on a flat wicket that offered little assistance, capturing 6 for 66 to guide South Africa to victory.
It was a timely performance, as Donald was nearing the end of his great career and would, in fact, finish it with only 30 more wickets. Pollock, for his part, remained a great bowler, but no longer bowled with the pace he showed early in his Test career. Someone needed to assume the mantle of strike bowler for South Africa, and Ntini took it upon himself to do just that.
He was sharp against Sri Lanka in the following series (December 2000 - January 2001), second only to Pollock in overs bowled and wickets taken, but when the Proteas toured the West Indies in early 2001, just when he should have been reinforcing his position as one of the team's leading bowlers, Ntini performed way below par and lost his place in the Test side for the final match of the five-game series. He captured only seven wickets in the series - although he dismissed Brian Lara three times.
Ntini needed to raise his game, but he struggled on very flat tracks against Zimbabwe in late 2001, and again when India toured South Africa immediately afterwards (October 2001).
A trip to Australia in December 2001 was hardly the recipe to bring about a change in the paceman's fortunes, and he was used sparingly. However, when Australia visited South Africa in February 2002, straight after the Proteas' tour Down Under, no one sent down more overs than Ntini, and he finished as joint top South African wicket taker in the Test series.
Raising the bar
In September 2002 a visit by Bangladesh, the weakest of the world's Test playing nations, gave Ntini renewed confidence as the Bangladeshis struggled to come to terms with his pace, aggression and skill. He led the South African bowlers in both the Test and one-day international averages, and was the one bowler who looked as if he could consistently overpower the Bangladeshi batsmen.
From that point, Ntini's fortunes continued to rise. He was South Africa's leading wicket taker in a Test series against Sri Lanka in late 2002, and second to Pollock in a Test series against Pakistan played in December 2002 and January 2003.
In February he was a solid, dependable performer for the Proteas in a disappointing 2003 World Cup, capturing 10 wickets at 17.6, while conceding only 3.37 runs per over, but the best was yet to come.
When South Africa toured England in mid-2003, they had to do so without two of the side's leading players for parts of the Test series, with both Shaun Pollock and Jacques Kallis missing along the way. The Proteas needed Ntini to lead, and he responded well to the challenge of a tough English tour.
Career highlight
The highlight of his career came in the second Test at the home of cricket, Lords. After a drawn first Test, South Africa took the initiative on the opening day of the second Test, skittling England for just 173 on a good batting pitch. Ntini led the way with 5 for 75.
Then, after the Proteas had established a huge first innings lead of 509 runs, they faced the problem of dismissing the English team for a second time on a featherbed track.
The Border paceman again played a leader's role, knocking over 5 for 145 to become the first black South African cricketer to capture 10 wickets in a match, and at Lords to boot. He shared the man of the match award with double-centurion Graeme Smith, and saw his 10-wicket haul commemorated on the honours board of the famous ground.
Ntini finished the series with 23 wickets, 10 more than any English bowler managed and six more than the next best South African, Shaun Pollock. He had taken up the challenge of leading South Africa's bowling, passing the test with flying colours.
The series finally established Ntini as a leading light in international cricket - with the promise that the best is surely still to come …
_________________________________________________
Aside from Allan Donald, Shaun Pollock, Jonty Rhodes and Gary Kirsten, I've never really liked any South African cricketers. They're either too mechanical, boring to watch (Kirsten qualifies on that front, but I like gritty batting. I love watching the likes of Dravid, Hussain, Atherton, Mark Richardson etc. bat) or do little else bar shooting their mouth off (Graeme Smith). But right now, I really do love watching one South African cricketer on the field - Makhaya Ntini.
He's a real bundle of energy. I've never seen him lose his temper. If he's been belted for four or six, he just gives a glare and returns to his mark almost as quickly as he ran in to bowl. If he's beaten the batsman all ends up, he ... you guessed it ... just gives a glare and returns to his mark almost as quickly as he ran in to bowl. He reminds me a lot of the way Malcolm Marshall, Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose used to react.
Recently he blew away New Zealand at Centurion and reduced Australia to 93 all out in a one-dayer.
Right now, he's probably the leading fast bowler in the world, improving every year. He has taken 74 wickets in his last 14 tests, since 2005, averaging 22.8 and a strike rate of 42.6! Telford Vice celebrates Ntini's superb performances of late.
http://cricket24x7.blogspot.com/2006/04/celebrating-makhaya-ntini.html
CricInfo profile:
Makhaya Ntini has had a fair bit to contend with during his young life. A product of the United Cricket Board's development programme, Ntini was discovered at a cattleherd in the Eastern Cape, given a pair of boots and packed off to Dale College, one of the country's best regarded cricketing nurseries. With an action consciously modelled on that of Malcolm Marshall, Ntini found himself touring Australia at the end of 1997 when Roger Telemachus failed a fitness test. He made his South African one-day debut at Perth in early 1998, bowling well in helpful conditions and his Test debut came against Sri Lanka in the same year. In 1999, however, Ntini was charged and initially convicted of rape. He steadfastly maintained his innocence and was subsequently acquitted on appeal. It was, though, a harrowing ordeal for the first black African cricketer to play for South Africa and it is to his credit that he has been able to rebuild his career. He was not chosen for South Africa again until the Sharjah tournament in 2000 where he both surprised and impressed observers with greater control than had been evident previously. He carried his Sharjah form over to the three one-dayers against Australia in April this year, again bowling impressively. Quite obviously, Ntini has bounced back from his troubles. Although he is a little short of the genuine pace of a Brett Lee or a Shoaib Akhtar, he is steadily improving and became the first South African to take ten wickets at Lord's in 2003 before devestating the West Indies in Trinidad in 2005 with 13 for 132, the best-ever match figures by a South African bowler. Finished the series against Australia at the end of 2005 with nine wickets at 29.33, including a menacing 5 for 64 in the first innings at Perth. Was forced to miss the third Test with a knee injury that restricted his bowling in the second innings at Melbourne. In the return series at home, Ntini proved a constant threat both as a wicket-taker and potential bruiser. Probing lines and a never-say-die attitude reaped him 19 wickets at 22.36 - with 6 for 100 and 4 for 78 at Johannesburg being a stand-out showing - and gave Justin Langer a warm welcome, in his 100th Test, with a first-ball clanger to the head that left him concussed. Peter Robinson April 2006
_________________________________________________
Once a "quota selection" for South Africa, Makhaya Ntini has gone on to become a team leader and one of the world's top cricketers. His hard-won status as a leading international strike bowler - as ready with a smile as with a bouncer - is far removed from his upbringing in a rural village in the Eastern Cape.
Ntini was first spotted by Border cricket development officer Raymond Booi in his home village of Mdingi. As a development officer, Booi did the rounds at the villages, introducing the young boys and men to the game of cricket, looking out for anyone with talent that might nurtured.
Ntini recalls that he was passing by one day when Booi was visiting, going to fetch cattle or horses, when he and some friends were called closer. He was given a ball and told to bowl. The results stunned Booi. Young Makhaya might have been a bit wild, but he was fast, and Booi knew he had found someone with enough raw talent to be turned into something special.
Booi arranged for Ntini to attend Dale College in King William's Town, a school well known for its sporting prowess. When he first arrived there at age 14, the budding cricket star couldn't speak a word of English. However, he took up the challenge of his new life and the opportunities it presented, and prospered.
Schoolboy success
Ntini represented Border Schools at the Nuffield Week (U19 inter-provincial) in 1994 and 1995, and in 1995 was also selected for the national age group team.
He made his first-class debut against the touring England team in November 1995, claiming Alec Stewart as his first first-class victim.
Being one of the first black cricketers to make a mark after South Africa became a democratic country in 1994, Ntini soon found himself in favour with the national cricket selectors. In January 1998 he made his one-day international debut against New Zealand on the WACA Ground in Perth. He performed superbly, sending down 10 overs and conceding only 31 runs, while claiming the wickets of Black Cap captain Stephen Fleming and wicketkeeper Adam Parore.
Two months later he made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in Cape Town, picking up two wickets in the match. Ntini was fortunate to make his debut at a time when South Africa had two world-class opening bowlers from whom he could learn - Shaun Pollock and Allan Donald, both of whom have broken the magical barrier of 300 Test wickets.
In 1998 Ntini tasted success at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur when a South African team missing some of its star players upset a heavily favoured Australian team to win the gold medal.
Things were looking good for the Border star, but life was shortly to take a big dip.
Dark days
Ntini was accused of raping a woman at the Buffalo Park Cricket Ground in December 1998. He maintained his innocence, receiving the backing of the United Cricket Board, but a shock awaited him in court. The judge delivered a verdict of guilty, and suddenly the 22-year old found himself facing a possible six years in prison.
Ntini's world was turned upside down. Not long before the tour he had been named as part of South Africa's 15-man squad for the 1999 World Cup in England. Now he was on the verge of being incarcerated, with the dreams of his career and life ruined. The United Cricket Board continued to support Ntini, but the organisation could not offer its funds to pay for his defence.
Ali Bacher came to Ntini's rescue. He contacted a friend of his who lived overseas and asked him whether he would consider providing money for Ntini's legal fees. The friend agreed. On appeal, Ntini's conviction was overturned, and he walked out of court a free man with a new lease on life.
Ntini returned to the national team a more focused, fit and enthusiastic player. He continued learning from Donald and Pollock, refining his game, and in November 2000 he finally delivered a breakthrough performance.
In the spotlight
Facing New Zealand in the first Test in Bloemfontein, all eyes were on Allan Donald as he chased his 300th Test wicket. He duly claimed it, dismissing Shayne O'Connor.
However, Ntini stole the spotlight from Donald with his performance in the Black Caps' second innings. Showing tremendous stamina, he sent down 31.4 overs on a flat wicket that offered little assistance, capturing 6 for 66 to guide South Africa to victory.
It was a timely performance, as Donald was nearing the end of his great career and would, in fact, finish it with only 30 more wickets. Pollock, for his part, remained a great bowler, but no longer bowled with the pace he showed early in his Test career. Someone needed to assume the mantle of strike bowler for South Africa, and Ntini took it upon himself to do just that.
He was sharp against Sri Lanka in the following series (December 2000 - January 2001), second only to Pollock in overs bowled and wickets taken, but when the Proteas toured the West Indies in early 2001, just when he should have been reinforcing his position as one of the team's leading bowlers, Ntini performed way below par and lost his place in the Test side for the final match of the five-game series. He captured only seven wickets in the series - although he dismissed Brian Lara three times.
Ntini needed to raise his game, but he struggled on very flat tracks against Zimbabwe in late 2001, and again when India toured South Africa immediately afterwards (October 2001).
A trip to Australia in December 2001 was hardly the recipe to bring about a change in the paceman's fortunes, and he was used sparingly. However, when Australia visited South Africa in February 2002, straight after the Proteas' tour Down Under, no one sent down more overs than Ntini, and he finished as joint top South African wicket taker in the Test series.
Raising the bar
In September 2002 a visit by Bangladesh, the weakest of the world's Test playing nations, gave Ntini renewed confidence as the Bangladeshis struggled to come to terms with his pace, aggression and skill. He led the South African bowlers in both the Test and one-day international averages, and was the one bowler who looked as if he could consistently overpower the Bangladeshi batsmen.
From that point, Ntini's fortunes continued to rise. He was South Africa's leading wicket taker in a Test series against Sri Lanka in late 2002, and second to Pollock in a Test series against Pakistan played in December 2002 and January 2003.
In February he was a solid, dependable performer for the Proteas in a disappointing 2003 World Cup, capturing 10 wickets at 17.6, while conceding only 3.37 runs per over, but the best was yet to come.
When South Africa toured England in mid-2003, they had to do so without two of the side's leading players for parts of the Test series, with both Shaun Pollock and Jacques Kallis missing along the way. The Proteas needed Ntini to lead, and he responded well to the challenge of a tough English tour.
Career highlight
The highlight of his career came in the second Test at the home of cricket, Lords. After a drawn first Test, South Africa took the initiative on the opening day of the second Test, skittling England for just 173 on a good batting pitch. Ntini led the way with 5 for 75.
Then, after the Proteas had established a huge first innings lead of 509 runs, they faced the problem of dismissing the English team for a second time on a featherbed track.
The Border paceman again played a leader's role, knocking over 5 for 145 to become the first black South African cricketer to capture 10 wickets in a match, and at Lords to boot. He shared the man of the match award with double-centurion Graeme Smith, and saw his 10-wicket haul commemorated on the honours board of the famous ground.
Ntini finished the series with 23 wickets, 10 more than any English bowler managed and six more than the next best South African, Shaun Pollock. He had taken up the challenge of leading South Africa's bowling, passing the test with flying colours.
The series finally established Ntini as a leading light in international cricket - with the promise that the best is surely still to come …
_________________________________________________