On a Jaunt

Over the last few years,however,Rhodes has made an effort not only to discover India but also his own country. On one such trip across the Rainbow Nation,to facilitate what he calls a cultural exchange,Rhodes — also the South African Tourism brand ambassador for India — was joined by four Indians,chosen through a contest. Their escapades and adventure have been made into a television series for NDTV Good Times. Titled My Travel Escapades in South Africa,it airs on August 12.

Rhodes is glad that his career — earlier as a cricketer and now as a fielding coach as well as a traveller — has been an extension of what he has loved. “We are a sports-crazy nation and I was encouraged by my father, to play everything from football and hockey,to cricket. So while I kept getting better at cricket,there was no team to play for — I remember having posters of Australian cricketers on my walls — until 1991,when the 21-year-long apartheid-caused ban was lifted by the International Cricket Council,” he recounts.

In the absence of cricket coaches in his country,he worked on his fielding skills through other sports like hockey and football. When the ban was lifted,playing for the country became just another means for earning more pocket money. “Back then,there was little advertising-generated revenue,so we were not paid as well as players today,” says Rhodes,who is credited with redefining fielding in cricket.