I was forever lonely Ntini on racism in South Africa cricket

Former South Africa cricketer Makhaya Ntini opened up about the racism he faced during his time with South African cricket.

During an interview with South African Broadcasting Corporation, Ntini recalled that he was forever alone at that time.

“Nobody knocked on my door to go for dinner. Teammates used to make plans right in front of me, skipping me out. When walking into the breakfast room, nobody came to sit with me.

“We wear the same uniform and sing the same national anthem, but I had to overcome (the isolation),” he added.

“I used to see the driver of the team bus, give him my bag, and then I would run to the cricket ground. I did the same thing on the way back, I just ran back instead,” said Ntini.

“People never understood why I did that, I never told them what I was trying to avoid. It became my best thing, I didn’t have to face any of it.”

“I was running away from the loneliness. If I was sitting at the back of the bus, they would go and sit at the front. Whenever we won, it was joyful but I was the first to be blamed whenever we lost.”

Ntini also claimed that his son Thando also faced racism.

“My son Thando has also experienced this, he was almost stopped from going on an U19 camp (on false pretenses),” he said.

Recently, after the murder of George Floyd by the American police, the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum.

Lungi Ngidi was the first cricketer to ask the Cricket South Africa to take a stand against racism in the country. The board sent out a statement saying that it stands by Ngidi’s statement.

Now, On Tuesday, Ntini, along with 30 former cricketers, signed a statement in support of the BLM movement, saying racism remains part of the game in the country.

However, former cricketers like Pat Symcox and Boeta Dippenar criticized Ngidi for supporting the BLM campaign.