It's do or dye for SA cricket
"Hopefully they can spray the pitch green as well," coach Russell Domingo joked on Monday ahead of the first ODI between South Africa and New Zealand in Centurion tomorrow. Spectators arriving early for the second Twenty20 at the same ground on Sunday were met by the sight of a tractor lugging a large drum, which was used to spray the outfield a delicate shade of pistachio.The trick is not new. Louis Luyt would disguise rugby fields in the same way, while water hazards on golf courses sometimes glow neon blue with dye. All to make the action appear more vivid.Given that the Highveld grass looks like a Marie biscuit in the winter, such cosmetic trickery is understandable .The South African team look a little dry too. They rallied to win the first T20 at Kingsmead on Friday, but hit the snooze button after that.On Monday they awoke to the cold fact that New Zealand had levelled the series. So it will take more than a lick of paint to convince South Africans that their team are over the shock of their exit from the World Cup at the hands of the self-same New Zealanders...
There’s never been a more important time to support independent media.
From World War 1 to present-day cosmopolitan South Africa and beyond, the Sunday Times has been a pillar in covering the stories that matter to you.
For just R80 you can become a premium member (digital access) and support a publication that has played an important political and social role in South Africa for over a century of Sundays. You can cancel anytime.
Already subscribed? Sign in below.
Questions or problems? Email helpdesk@timeslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00.