Cricket
AB de Villiers responds to claims of racial discrimination
A report has alleged South Africa's cricket board, as well as Graeme Smith, Mark Boucher and AB de Villiers had all engaged in prejudicial conduct against black players.
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AB de Villiers threatened to walk out of a tour in 2015 if Khaya Zondo was in the XI, Dean Elgar was flown to India from South Africa instead, according to the SJN report. (File Photo/CSA)
AB De Villiers on Wednesday said he has always expressed 'honest cricketing opinions... never based on anyone's race" in his career for South Africa. He was responding to a report which alleged South Africa's cricket board, as well as former captain and current director Graeme Smith, current head coach Mark Boucher and former captain AB de Villiers had all engaged in prejudicial conduct against black players.
A 235-page final report submitted by the Social Justice and Nation-Building (SJN) commission, which had been constituted to investigate claims of racial injustice in South African cricket, found De Villiers and others had favoured white players and treated black players unfairly, according to ESPNCricinfo.
Following this, De Villiers responded to the allegations made in the report.
AB de Villiers reportedly threatened to walk out of the South African national team during a 2015 series in India if batsman Khaya Zondo was selected, according to former CSA President Norman Arendse's report into the incident, as mentioned in the report submitted on Wednesday. He said Zondo's name had been on the team sheet on the night before the 5th ODI in Mumbai, and that his removal from the XI hours before what would have been his debut was "unfair and contrary to the CSA selection policy."
After the tournament in 2015, a group of cricketers calling themselves 'Black Players in Unity' had written a letter to the South African cricket board highlighting Zondo's role in the 2015 series. They argued that black cricketers were being taken into the squad to adhere to South Africa's racial transformation policy but that they were being seen as 'water carriers'.