In a South African team mostly loved and respected by
everyone across the cricketing world, he was the gentle monster, the smiling
giant and a perfect team man.
 |
| The defining image for the gentle giant |
A bowler who never truly achieved his potential in the eyes
of critics, who always felt short of providing game defining performances, it
was perhaps fitting for him to move away from the game permanently in a series
which will certainly not be remembered for his career best performance haul. As
his career has spanned out, being in the shadows of some really gifted bowlers
South Africa has ever produced, it was in a way fitting that even his best
performance was earmarked in a test which will always be remembered for
notorious reasons of Australia’s ball tampering incident, and certainly not due
to his individual brilliance with the ball. In a way, it symbolized his career of
not having the spotlight throughout his career in a perfect way.
You feel for him in a way you feel for a person who puts in all
the efforts possible at his end and then falls short of his goals most of the
times. People can advise to tweak this and that, but in his mind, the person knows
that he is playing to his strength, garnering every ounce of strength to do
well. But it just doesn’t happen. And he is fine with it. He will smile, go
back to his mark and start again.
Numbers don’t lie and in an era where 400 test wickets have
become the norm to adjudicate greatness on a bowler, he has fallen short by a
comfortable margin, garnering “just” over 300 wickets so that there is no
debate on his greatness. But ask the team, or better see the numbers of his
partners-in-crime and you will find that, he made telling contributions to another
bowler’s wicket column when he was bowling in tandem with them. Perhaps, some people
have the duty of making others look good and feel happy about that and if that
is the case, then Morne has been a great example. An exemplary servant of South African cricket and a case of what could have been.
To conclude, I find solace that Morne has decided to move on
from international cricket at a time, when he has enjoyed an amazing last 15
months of cricketing performance, getting noticed more than ever. Maybe, for
some of us, what could have been is a better prospect of finding happiness in.
Best of luck Morne. At your best, you were a treat to watch.
