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November 19, 2008

Bowling tips, autographs, and promoting diversity

Posted by Cri-Zelda Brits at in South African cricket



I took time out from preparations for the World Cup last week to go on a school visit to promote ICC Diversity Day, which is being celebrated on November 20 .

The day tries to promote the fact that cricket is a game that can be enjoyed by everybody, regardless of their gender, age or ethnicity. Along with Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers, we went to Montrose Primary School in Sandton, where we helped deliver coaching to boys and girls at the school.

It was great to see so many young people enjoying the game, especially girls, and I hope that we can continue encourage more and more females to play the game. There was lots of enthusiasm amongst the girls for playing the game and I was pleasantly surprised at the standard. Give it a few more years and I think I will have to be worried about my place in the team!

It was great to spend time with Hashim and AB and see what positive role models the top international players can be for young people. The reception that greeted them at the school was incredible and we certainly all signed our fair share of autographs – it was nice that the kids seemed keen to get my signature as well as the guys.


















Will she replace me in the team?
© ICC


Hopefully we can use events like the next year to build the profile of the game, so our top South African women’s players can inspire more people to play the game.

There isn’t a huge amount of competitive cricket for us to play at the moment, so the main focus is just on working on our fitness.

We all to have to report on a daily basis what fitness work we have done to the squad and then we have fitness tests every fortnight. This is pretty intense and makes sure that nobody loses their focus in the build up to the selection of our squad.

We will then have a training camp in early December, before the final squad is chosen in early January.

I am also working hard to try and be in a position to start bowling for South Africa again, which I think will be an important additional asset if we are going to do well in 2009.

We know that there is a bit of work to do on our bowling and hopefully I will add some extra variety to the attack, although it will be strange starting to bowl on a regular basis again having not done this role for so long.

People ask me whether they think we can make it to the super six stage at the World Cup, but my answer is why can’t we go and win the tournament.

We know that will be extremely tough, but if we don’t aim for the top then we will never achieve number one position in the rankings. There is lots of hard work to do before then, but I think South African cricket has a bright future, particularly if our school visit last week is anything to go by.

Comments (2)

The Contributors
Mithali Raj
Mithali Raj, India's former captain, has been on the international circuit for a decade. In August 2006, she led India to their first-ever Test and series win in England and capped off the year by winning the Asia Cup - the second time in 12 months - without dropping a game. India, under her captaincy, also reached the World Cup final in 2005. Now, as one of the senior members of the side, and the premier batsman, a lot will be riding on her for the two World Cups - 50-over and Twenty20 - that India will play in 2009.
Urooj Mumtaz
Urooj Mumtaz managed to juggle a course in dentistry along with captaining Pakistan. Their most recent triumph was qualifying for the World Cup next year and the 22-year old Urooj will lead a young team to Australia in hope of creating a favourable impression of the Pakistan women's team among the other sides as well as back home. A legspinner, she has a hat-trick against Zimbabwe.
Cri-zelda Brits
Cri-zelda Brits became South Africa’s captain at the age of 23, standing in for Shandre Fritze in the home series against Pakistan in 2007. She followed this by captaining the side to a 3-0 series whitewash against the Netherlands as well as winning the first-ever Test between the two sides by 159 runs. In 2008 she scored her maiden ODI hundred and led South Africa to a spot in the World Cup after beating Pakistan in the Qualifiers final in Stellenbosch. She also coaches the Northwest women's team, based in Potchefstroom, and runs her own academy.
Shelley Nitschke
Shelley Nitschke combines playing for Australia and her state with working in cricket, as a school officer. A useful spinner, her batting is also worth talking about – she has developed into a handy allrounder. Her major achievements to date are winning the 2005 World Cup, taking 7 for 24 against England in Kidderminster in 2005 and being nominated for the ICC Women's Player of the Year in 2006-07. Although she has played netball, softball and basketball, cricket has always been her stand-out sport.
Ebony Rainford-Brent
Ebony Rainford-Brent made history as one of eight England players to be handed a Chance to Shine coaching contract, allowing her flexibility around training. A top-order batsman, she fought back from what doctors thought was a career-killing back injury and could one day bowl again – calling her determined is an understatement. She is on the Surrey Academy and her Super 4s side is Diamonds. Proficient in basketball and athletics, she settled for playing cricket … and the drums.
Haidee Tiffen
Haidee Tiffen has played for New Zealand for more than ten years and is now their captain, having begun her career with Otago Under-21s before heading to Canterbury. She has played representational hockey, basketball and rugby – but cricket is her passion and won out over New Zealand junior hockey. She is particularly proud of winning the World Cup in 2000, reaching the 100-ODI milestone and being skipper. Her experience also includes playing for Sussex for two winters and she was also part of the first female academy in Lincoln. Somehow she also finds time to teach Health and PE at Hillmorton High School.
Isobel Joyce
Isobel Joyce,a class bat with a steely mentality, comes from a family full of cricketers - twin sister Cecilia plays alongside her for Ireland and brother Dom for the men’s national team, while another brother, Ed, plays for England and Middlesex. Her first half-century came against a strong New Zealand attack in Dublin in 2004 and her figures of 4 for 20 helped her side beat Scotland by six wickets in the European Championship in 2001, where Ireland won all their three matches. Her 46 against Netherlands in the summer of 2007 helped to maintain her place in the World Cup qualifiers in South Africa. She was in outstanding form with both and ball during the tournament, scoring 148 runs at 37 and taking 10 wickets at an average of 7. She ran out five Pakistani players in Ireland's first match, before earning two successive Player-of-the-Match awards against Scotland and then Zimbabwe, against whom she scored 70 and took 4 for 10. She was named captain for their next series, against West Indies, after Heather Whelan pulled out because she was expecting.
Nadine George
Nadine George has been a regular for West Indies since her debut in 1999. She first led the side on their tour of Europe in June-July 2008, when West Indies thrashed Ireland and Netherlands while putting up a respectable performance against England. Nadine combines playing for West Indies and her national team, St.Lucia, with her day job as a Sergeant in the Police Marine Unit of the Royal St.Lucia Police Force. A left-hand batsman and wicketkeeper, Nadine says the highlights of her career are receiving an MBE at Buckingham Palace in 2005, being the first West Indies woman cricketer to score a century in a Test (in Pakistan in 2004), playing in the World Cup in South Africa (2005), and playing club cricket in Australia in 2006. Nadine also plays netball and volleyball and loves the marine environment and is passionate about diving. She is a qualified open water diver and during her working hours captains a 65 and 82 ft vessel. Her motto in life is "with hard work and dedication one can achieve".
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