Shame on Makhaya Ntini's teammates: Darren Sammy
Makhaya Ntini, the first black cricketer to play Test cricket for South Africa, recently revealed the alienation that he was subjected to during his playing days. He mentioned he was a victim of racism and how he faced loneliness from his own teammates.
"I was forever lonely because the first thing that comes mind is not to have someone knocking at your door and say 'let's go for dinner,'. That's loneliness on its own. Where you will watch friends calling each other and then having plans right in front of you and you will be skipped and they will go by themselves." Makhaya Ntini had revealed in a television interview.
'Makhaya Ntini, you will always be a hero to us'
Former West Indian skipper Darren Sammy has spoken on the matter and extended his support to Makhaya Ntini. The former West Indies captain, who has been extremely vocal about the Black Lives Matter movement, touched upon the topic in a tweet and mentioned how he drew inspiration from Makhaya Ntini in his younger days.
"Yow this is sad and here I was wanting to be as fit as Makhaya Ntini not knowing the reason for all this running to and from stadiums. Literally running away from loneliness. Shame on his teammates. You will always be a hero to us. #MakhayaNtini," Darren Sammy wrote.
During the interview, Makhaya Ntini also brought to light how he avoided travelling on the team bus and instead ran to stadiums.
"I will go to the driver of the bus early morning and then I would give him my bag and say to him 'I'll meet you at the ground. I would run to the cricket ground. And then the same thing on my way back ... I would run all the way back to the hotel. People never understood why I was doing that and I would never say to them this is why I am doing this - to avoid A,B,C,D," Makhaya Ntini had said.
The 43-year old pacer took 390 Test wickets while he popped up with 266 scalps in ODI Cricket in an international career that spanned 13 years.