Proteas women’s all-rounder Dane van Niekerk says she has learned that cricket is not about her, but about the team. Upon her return to international cricket, she has ambitions to win the World Cup, not only for the country but for the players of the past, including Shabnim Ismail and Lizelle Lee.
Proteas women’s head coach Mandla Mashimbyi revealed his plans just before the recently concluded ICC Women’s World Cup in India, outlining a pathway for Van Niekerk’s return to international cricket.
In a pre-World Cup camp in Durban, Mashimbyi involved the former captain for the first time since she reversed her rather controversial retirement decision about two years ago.
Having spent time away from the game and the national team, Van Niekerk revealed that she has learned the game is bigger than any individual.
“It’s not about me. The game is bigger than me, and I realised this over the last two years,” the 32-year-old told Independent Media.
“You get into a situation in your life where you think that cricket is about you, but it’s not. It’s definitely not about you.”
The experienced player emphasised that her return is not motivated by South Africa’s recent appearances in three back-to-back ICC finals.
“I’m not coming back because South Africa has been in three finals. That’s not the reason I’m coming back,” she said.
“I loved watching the team from the outside, creating these stories, the success stories. I’ve got a very good relationship with Mandla.”
It has been widely reported that one of Van Niekerk’s reasons for returning is to win the World Cup. The all-rounder told Independent Media that her ambitions are not only to claim the elusive trophy for the country and current players, but also for the past Proteas who helped shape the team.
In previous years, South Africa had some outstanding cricketers, including Shabnim Ismail, Lizelle Lee and Trisha Chetty, to name a few. Van Niekerk reiterated her ambition to win the World Cup for them as well.
“I feel like I want to do it not just for myself and my country, but for Trisha Chetty, for Shabnim, for Lizelle, for Mignon du Preez,” Van Niekerk said.
“I want to do it for them as well. I feel like I owe them that — that we can pick up a trophy and say that we did it. It’s people that I’ve played cricket with for a long time. They’ve become not just friends, but family, and I feel like it’s something that I want to achieve. I really do.”
Van Niekerk and the Proteas women’s team are set to kick off the home summer this week at Newlands in Cape Town, where the first match of the season is scheduled for Friday (starts 2pm).
