White Lightning fades into sunset

It has been a disastrous week and the anguish showed today as Allan Donald announced his retirement from the game (hardly a surprise) a few hours after selector Pat Symcox resigned his position while opening batsman Gary Kirsten’s future is uncertain and Lance Klusener is pondering his long-term future.

Amid this, the future of the United Cricket Board’s disgraced president, Percy Sonn, is now being questioned. This follows a secret probe, said to have been ordered by an agency with links to the Ministry of Justice into his drunken behaviour on more than one occasion during the World Cup. It is said to be behind his losing out on the possibility of being made a judge of the Supreme Court.

Sonn embarrassed British guests with his indiscreet behaviour at the Paarl game between India and Holland and angered certain senior UCB officials when he turned up in Centurion, grinning broadly the day India lost to Australia. Once a big name in the ministry, Sonn has been passed over for a position as a high court judge as he failed to make the list of those approved by the state President’s office.

This follows voiced concerns by some of South African sponsors on Sonn’s behaviour and the view that there was little pride in playing a sport for a body whose figurehead was considered an embarrassment through, on a number of occasions, his unacceptable behaviour.

There is also speculation that he will be asked to resign rather than face the added embarrassment of being replaced in what could become a palace coup. In Symcox’s case, the former Test off-spinner said that his position as a media personality ran contrary to his position as a selector.

Donald’s international retirement has long been expected. In his retirement speech, the erstwhile ‘White Lightning’ said, ‘‘I would like to be remembered as someone who gave his all. I was very passionate about the badge and the country and about every team I’ve played for.’’ He also said that he wanted to play at least for two more seasons for his province, Free State.