Colour of affairs: Batsman opts for course correction

CHENNAI: “WE have a qualification system (South African version of the Q-School) to get into the Sunshine Tour (their version of PGTI) where all the mainstream guys (overseas players and South Africans) will have to take part to try and get into that. Some 10 or 20 will get in. But it doesn’t stop. There is a separate coloured-only tournament and they would let close to 30 guys in... To be honest some of these 30 guys cannot even play the game at a proper level.”

South Africa’s transformational policy in the field of sport — especially in team disciplines — has been hotly debated. There is lesser scope for having those goals in individual sports like golf but the authorities back home have been trying, according to golfer Albie Hanekom. The 34-year-old, who is playing the ongoing Chennai Open at Madras Gymkhana Golf Annexe, is intimate on the subject. Those goals — put in place to foster a sort of cultural equality — don’t wash with Hanekom. “They are trying to push the things at the top level to make politics look good.”

More than a few in the know have referred to the policies as ‘reverse racism’. Hanekom doesn’t want to go there but he knows what he is talking. He fell foul to the system in his formative years. Around the year 2000, when Hanekom was growing up to be a handy batsman at the U-15 level, he was pulled out of a competitive match after a phone call. “You get special colours on your tie depending on what state/province you represent. I was walking around with one of these two days before a match and the next thing I know is I am not playing.”

While he continued to play cricket for his country at the junior level till 2001 (he played in the same team with the likes of AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla), incidents like those made it easy for him to seek different pastures when it was time for him to pick. “It doesn’t really help your motivation level... it made my choice easy.”

He hasn’t had an easy time in Chennai. He has been indesposed and the results have taken a beating. After shooting a 12-over 82 on Day 1, he returned with a card of seven-over 77 to comfortably miss the half-way cut.

Perera storms back

After shooting a sedate two-under on the opening day, seasoned Sri Lankan Mithun Perera set the course on the fire with a sizzling seven-under 63 to grab a share of the lead. Compatriot N Thangaraja (who shot an even-par 70 on Day 2) and Vikrant Chopra are also at nine-under 131 for the tournament. Meanwhile, Anil Bajrang Mane set tongues wagging with a hole in one that enabled him to make the cut.
leaderboard  (after second round, Indians unless mentioned): T1 Vikrant Chopra, Mithun Perera (SL), N Thangaraja (SL) (all -9); 4 Mukesh Kumar -8; 5 Sujjan Singh, Shamim Khan (all -7).