No ball for South African cricketers

No ball for South African cricketers
Nilanjana Sengupta

FEBRUARY 27: On the field, they are mean machines, defanging the defense attack with deadly precision. Off it, the South African cricket team has been plain old party-poopers. No tales here of victory celebrations or of relaxed cricketers hitting town to explore Mumbai's night sights after wrapping up the test match against Indian in three days.

Instead, after handing the Indians their first defeat at Wankhede stadium in 12 years, the South Africans merely popped a few drinks in the dressing room and later at the Taj Mahal Hotel, but more importantly, attended a team meeting, probably to plot future strategy. An image that team manager Goolam Rajah has been keen to underline beyond any doubt, by stating that ``The team members have been struggling for time and none of them have the time to talk now.''

Some of the team members are new and it's their first visit to Mumbai. Yet, most of them have been sunbathing at the Taj Mahal Hotel poolside or watching TV in the secure confines of their rooms. The man with the six-wicket haul, Shaun Pollock has been glued to the channel that promises to help you `discover your world'. But the extent of his discovery has been a trip to the hotel's bookstore, Nalanda. Ever since the team landed here last week, few have ventured beyond the hotel. Debutante Clive Eksteen did step out to buy some T-shirts and shorts at a shopping centre. And while Jacques Kallis and Allan Donald were lounging near the pool, skipper Hansie Cronje, Nicky Boje and Peiter Strydom took a stroll on Colaba Causeway. Cronje spend time looking at VCDs but did not buy anything. ``No, no. No shopping and no sightseeing,'' they chorused.

In fact, Cronje spends his spare hours studying. ``Well, I want to get into business, e-commerce to be more specific, after sports. I am busy studying for a Masters in Business Leadership examination which is at the end of the year.''

Some of the more daring ones like Mkhaya Ntini, Clive Eksteen and Mark Boucher danced the night away at the Fire and Ice discotheque, which, however, they denied, saying, ``We don't know who went there!'' Peiter Strydom, the middle-order batsman, did venture an opinion on Mumbai: ``I like whatever I have seen of the city. Though I haven't done much sightseeing, I would like to come back, probably with my wife.''

The ice cracked a bit when asked about the food. ``Chicken korma is my favourite dish. I am eating a lot of it here,'' said Pollock. ``But I steer clear of hot, spicy food even back home in Durban where there are lots of Indian restaurants selling curry.'' Boje also digs chicken, chicken tikka masala, and Strydom too likes butter chicken. ``Blomfontein, where I am from, doesn't have many Indian restaurants, so I haven't sampled Indian food before. But I liked eating butter chicken and chicken masala at the hotel,'' he said.

The South Africans leave for Bangalore on Monday evening for the second battle of skills and wits against India. While the Indian team battles its internal demons, the Springboks will probably fly out with their reputations as professionals intact, on the field and off it.