Hope springs eternal, are we the crazy ones?
This has been my toughest week in the UK by far. On Thursday I arrived in London after spending time in Cardiff and Birmingham in the past seven days.
Unsurprisingly, the Proteas have taken us on a vicious rollercoaster ride. In Cardiff we smiled after our first win of the tournament over Afghanistan.
To Edgbaston we then went, knowing that a win against New Zealand would launch the team straight back into semi-final contention.
It is a world class facility with one of the most impressive press boxes I have ever seen.
READ: Faf: SA fans have the right to be angry
It was the scene of the greatest ODI ever played, South Africa’s ill-fated semi-final against Australia back in 1999. Twenty years later and those ghosts came out to haunt the Proteas once again. Scary and heartbreaking, but most of all, utterly disappointing.
It all came crashing down, burnt to the ground in front of our eyes as New Zealand did what they do best, beating South Africa in World Cup games.
No matter how many times we have seen this happen before, it is human nature to always bet against the odds. A horror movie starring the Proteas, watched by millions of South Africans once every four years.
It was Albert Einstein who defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results. We must be the crazy ones.
In Cardiff I stumbled upon Dennis and Cynthia, two South Africans who moved here almost two decades ago. They now live in Birmingham, incidentally my next stop on tour. So, I asked them for some advice on the city and where I could go for a lekker chow.
ALSO: Tour Diary with Myron Naicker: A dark skinned brother meets the Red Dragon
“You want good food,” Dennis asked.
“You must come visit us at our house,” he exclaimed.
After we relived the nightmare of Edgbaston, I visited them at their beautiful home. I was greeted by warm smiles, top Durban curries, and some fine scotch whiskey. We shared stories of South Africa, their time in the UK, and how their lives had evolved since they moved here.
To be honest, it was the closest I had ever felt to home since I got here four weeks ago.
Simply put, that is just the caring nature of South Africans. Ubuntu remains a strong trait of ours wherever we meet in the world.
On Sunday, the Proteas play Pakistan at Lords. Lets not sugarcoats things here, they have been awful, but I am not going to let their shortcomings ruin my first ever visit to the home of cricket.
Dressed in a suit, I will skip down St John’s Wood Road with a twinkle in my eye. Somebody stop me!
Keep up to date with the latest Cricket World Cup action with Myron Naicker as he brings us exclusive updates from England. Find the latest update in the podcast channel below:
