Published 13:35 IST, January 22nd 2020

Jonty Rhodes credits South Africa cricket career to 'White Privileges' more than merit

Jonty Rhodes has scored 2500 Test and 5900 ODI runs for South Africa in his stint with the team that lasted until 2000. He is an all-time fielding great.

Reported by: Mrigank Pandey
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In his day, former South African cricketer Jonty Rhodes gained a lot of acclaim for his athletic fielding in international cricket. long-retired batsman, who was in India for an event, candidly talked about struggles that South Africa faces as it tries to bring equal opportunities despite a player's race. Here is what Rhodes said.

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Jonty Rhodes get honest about his selection

To combat issues around racial segregation and unequal opportunities, South African team currently follows a quota system where y have to field at least six players of colour over course of a season. se six players should also consist of two 'Black' Africans. When batsman Temba Bavuma was t picked for second Test match versus England, SA's target quota was t fulfilled and selection strategy brought to surface woes faced by Proteas team.

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According to Rhodes, lack of work opportunities for disadvantd communities in South Africa is what is keeping sport from uncovering cricketing gems. Rhodes compared South Africa's cricket team with  country's world champion rugby team and explained how cricket can learn from it. Dark-skinned cricketers have t been getting equal opportunities and Rhodes was completely empatic towards this fact.

To convey his feelings, Rhodes even shared an instance from his life where he talked about being selected in Proteas squad. Rhodes termed his selection as 'white privilege' and ackwledged how he played for team in an era where disadvantd communities were t even getting a chance to play game. racial quota is of importance to current setup as it gives players of all backgrounds  chance to represent ir country. Rhodes even made a humbling statement in which he said how his South Africa selection was easy despite his mediocre statistics. "I wasn’t really competing with 50% of population", Rhodes added.

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After Kagiso Rabada was handed a one-match ban by ICC and Lungi Ngidi sustained an injury, South Africa will most probably be playing Temba Bavuma in fourth and final Test of series against England. England are leading series 2-1.

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13:35 IST, January 22nd 2020