Africa-Press – South-Africa. Not many South African cricket players get to play 100 internationals, but fast bowler Ayabonga Khaka will add her name to that list when she takes to the field against Sri Lanka at the JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom on Wednesday.
Aspiring young cricketers in Eastern Cape villages and townships want to be like the international from Xesi, 90km north of East London, not because of her skin colour but because of where she came from and what she has achieved in her career.Khaka has taken 125 ODI wickets at an average of 25.53 and an economy rate of 4.12. She played in the Women’s ODI World Cup in 2017 and 2022.
Though she is always smiling on the pitch, Khaka’s journey to the top has not been as smooth as she makes it look.
She started playing the game in grade 1 at Ingwenya Primary School. That year, aged seven, she became the only girl in the boy’s mini-cricket team.
From the beginning, Khaka preferred bowling to batting as she was less likely to be hit by the ball and it was challenging, specially against boys.She took particular pleasure in getting boys out. She also liked cricket as it involved a lot of discipline.
She continued playing mini-cricket until high school as it was her only option, but then stopped for a year because Ntabenkonyana Senior Secondary School didn’t offer it as a sport.
She switched to soccer and played in the Sasol League for Thunderbirds alongside Banyana Banyana stars Bambanani Mbane and Kholosa Biyana.
However, it was a brief switch and in grade 9 she started cricket again for the Middledrift Women’s Cricket Club, where she was eventually noticed and brought into the Border U19 girls’ team and the Border senior provincial team.
In 2009, she got her first taste of national cricket when she was selected for the South Africa U-19 women’s team and made her senior debut for the Proteas in 2012.
When the 31-year-old steps onto the field on Wednesday, she will follow in the footsteps of veteran Makhaya Ntini, who shares a similar background, and Kagiso Rababa by becoming the third black South African player to reach 100 ODI caps.
“I’m just a cricketer. I will take it as if I’m achieving a milestone that others have achieved, not looking at the thing that I will be the first one,” Khaka said on Tuesday.
“I always looked up to Makhaya Ntini growing up because he was the person I could relate to because we come from the same part of the country.”
“With KG [Rabada], he is growing and a youngster. But the experience he has shows every day.
“I’m grateful to have been part of a group that has achieved that,” she said.
Ntini is from a village called Mdingi, less than 50km from Xesi.
The Proteas lead 1-0 in the three-ODI series. They have a chance to clinch yet another series win in Potchefstroom and points towards the ICC Women’s ODI Championship (2022-2025), which determines qualification for the World Cup.
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