Real Sports Stars Cry, on and off the Field

Maharaj and Markram weren't the only ones...by far

It’s one thing, and a good thing, for a professional sports stars to cry publicly during moments of extreme triumph, but quite another for them to make no attempt to disguise or hide the tears, not even a wipe. Keshav Maharaj wore his emotions like a wedding suit, with a combination of duty and pride. His controlled sobbing during a post-match interview with Graeme Smith may be the last of many memories during an extraordinary contest, and occasion, to fade.

That’s the thing about Test cricket; it really means something to its players. Often it means everything. Even the absurdly mangled structure of the WTC doesn’t change that. And here’s another painful truth. 99% of the players who retire from the format do so because they’re not good enough to play it, technically or physically. Never has cricket’s greatest format been more efficient at filtering in its best players, and the rest out.

Anyway, comparisons with the success of rugby’s Springboks were embraced by cricket’s captain: “The biggest thing I admire about their success is how they've embraced what being South African actually means. We're unique in a lot of ways. Our present and future is shaped by our past,” Temba Bavuma said.

The captain tried hard to deflect post-match attention from himself back to the team but it has not been a smooth journey for the 35-year-old who admitted that the national captaincy had never been an ambition as a young player. He would have been happy simply silencing the doubters about his place in the team – but even that took many years.

“I guess this is a moment to be recognised as more than just a black African cricketer, to be seen as someone who's done something that the country has wanted for a long time. So, I'll definitely walk around with my chest out. But again, I can only hope that it inspires young kids, the next generation of cricketers and even our country,” Bavuma said.

Turns out, defeat may have converted Australian captain Pat Cummins into a bit of a reluctant Bavuma fan:

“I thought the way he played was fantastic. He gave us that half chance early on (dropped at slip by Steve Smith on two) but then didn't give us another look until he got out. In terms of leading, it's hard to judge unless you're playing underneath someone so I don't know about his captaincy but, from the outside, he looked very good.”

The Australian captain also had some strong words for those who doubted the veracity of South Africa’s route to the final and weather they were ‘worthy’ champions.

“They made it here fair and square - everyone has a slightly different route to make the final but they absolutely deserve to make the final and showed why they are very deserving champions,” Cummins said.

On Markram’s heroic 136 which anchored the Proteas’ fourth innings run chase towards 282 – the highest total of the match – Cummins was once again full of praise:

“He was pretty hard to dislodge. He batted really well and kept the scoreboard ticking over as well, which can be frustrating. A few of us have played alongside him in the IPL and he’s very well respected, he's a good man, Aiden.Unfortunately for us, made it look pretty easy out there and just built a big innings. We threw a fair bit at him but he had an answer for everything.”

* 30 seconds with Aiden Markram:

Q – How did you sleep on 102* with 69 runs still needed?

A - Horribly to be honest. I tried to take a sleeping tablet, it didn't work. The mind just couldn't switch off. But fortunately, today wasn't ever going to be a full day, so I knew either way it would be fine. But yeah, didn't sleep too well.

Q – Were you crying after you reached your century?

A - From about 5:30pm, the last half hour, the game had slowed down. I had a bit of time to look around and see all the fans, the family, all the mates that are there… and I was like, yes, we're here and getting close to history. And it caught me off guard. Then the 100 happened, and a couple of tears leaked out that I was trying to fight. That’s ok…”

Q - You had a beer with someone in the stand before the formalities started?

A - That was one of my mates from school. He wanted me to come over and I said, ‘flip man, I can't, it's too busy, it's chaos.’ And then he was like, well, here's a beer. And I was like, OK, I'm in. So, I've had my first one for today and I'm pretty sure there'll be a few more.

Q – Do you think you’ll be the same person after this game, this result?

A - “Umm…probably not. Actually, no.”