CENTURION, Dec 26: South African players raised a fist to acknowledge the country’s struggle against apartheid but refrained from taking the knee associated with the global Black Lives Matter Movement just before the start of the first Test against Sri Lanka, here on Saturday.
The players, led by Quinton de Kock, raised their firsts after singing the South African national anthem before the start of the opening day at the Super Sport Park. Pressure has been mounting on the Proteas to show their support to the global BLM Movement by taking a knee, but the players in a statement said that the raised fists have more historical context to the South Africans.
“The raised fist is a powerful gesture in our own history, as expressed in the iconic images of Nelson and Winnie Mandela on Mandela’s release from prison in 1990,” the players said in a statement. “In this context it was a powerful gesture of triumph, an acknowledgment of the struggle against apartheid, and a commitment to continuing to fight for equality, justice and freedom, while also honouring the religious and cultural responsibilities of every member of our team.”
The players said the team had, on multiple occasions, declared its “unmistakable” support to the BLM campaign and committed to continue doing the same together.
“We recognize that our actions will most likely result in criticism from some community, one way or another, but … we have taken the decision through a process of deep democracy to raise our fists.
They said the raised fist has a long history within the Civil Rights movement, like American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos did during the medal ceremony at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games. South Africa players have so far refused to take a knee — as many high profile figures in sport have done in the wake of George Floyd’s killing by Minneapolis police in the USA on May 25.
Sri Lanka won the toss and that had enough assistance for the bowlers. South Africa could not capitalize on that as they sprayed it around and allowed the visitors to get off to a flying start.
At the end of the day’s play, Sri Lanka scored 340/6 in 85 overs. Dhananjaya de Silva top scored with 79 runs before being retired hurt. (Agencies)
