Cape Town – Former Proteas wicket-keeper batsman Mark Boucher revealed he is looking forward to go head to head with new Durban Heat coach Gary Kirsten in the Mzansi Super League.
Boucher, who is coach of the Tshwane Spartans, revealed that he is looking forward meeting up and then butting heads with Kirsten.
“It’s always a pleasure being in Gary’s company, whether as a player with him, whether batting with him or whether he was my coach as was the case at the end of my career. It will be nice to have a coffee with him, check how things are going, catch up with his family,” said Boucher via a press release.
“He’ll be excited to get involved in this league and I’m sure we’ll have some nice competitive chats while we play against each other, which is the way it should be, it’s a very good thing for South African cricket that he is involved in this competition.”
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Last year, the Spartans could only manage four wins from their 10 matches and finished second to last on the log.
The Spartans have retained star batsman AB de Villiers, Theunis de Bruyn, Tony De Zorzi and the young star of last year’s tournament, Lutho Sipamla.
Sipamla finished as the joint second-highest wicket-taker with 16 wickets and shortly made his T20 debut for the Proteas.
“They’ve all done well in the domestic season, they’re quality players, guys who we are backing to perform once again. A guy like Lutho comes in to the equation, he had a fantastic season with the Warriors and a great season last time for us at the Spartans. It’s a reward for guys doing well, but also mixed with a bit of talent that we see, that we can work in this environment that can take their game a step forwards,” said Boucher.
Boucher hopes that the Pretoria-side will give a bounce back from their disappointing campaign and be on song come November.
The Spartans’ marquee international player Tom Curran was part of England’s Cricket World Cup winning squad. Boucher revealed that he is excited to work with the Englishman and hopes that he will bring some expertise and energy to the competition.
“He’s come from an environment in which England just won a World Cup, so that can only be good. He’s been in that side for a while. He’s been a performer at county level and for England, I’m looking forward to great things from him over here. He brings a wealth of experience but he sounds like a nice team man as well.”
The Mzansi Super League draft is set to get underway on September 3.
“We’ll see how the draft goes, it’s not a perfect science; some guys you want, some you get, some you don’t get,” said Boucher.
“We’ve got a wealth of experience here, the guys want to come play here, it’s a nice place to tour, and to get international players into this environment. We’ve got good grounds, at times the crowds come in and really support this competition. It is exciting.”
TSHWANE SPARTANS SUPPORT STAFF (FROM):
Mark Boucher (Head Coach), Mandla Mashimbyi (Assistant Head Coach), Tumi Masekela (Strength and Conditioning Coach), Sizwe Hadebe (Physiotherapist), Karen Smithies (Team Manager) and Lucy Davey (Media Officer)
