Cricket writer Anand Vasu visits the school where former SA star Jacques Kallis learnt his craft
The green Jacques Kallis Oval at Wynberg Boys High School is an apt tribute to the former South African player who is considered one of the finest all-rounders to grace international cricket Pic/Anand Vasu
It is not often that a public school produces international cricketers with regularity. There's a little pocket in Cape Town, not far from the Newlands ground, that is locally referred to as Little Newlands. The Wynberg Boys School has a rich culture of producing sportsmen and its most famous son, Jacques Kallis, has the cricket oval named after him.
The green Jacques Kallis Oval a bench which was donated by the class of 1960 when Kallis scored a double century against India at Centurion in 2010. Pic/Anand Vasu
Set in a valley
When you think school ground, you don't imagine the kind of venue Wynberg has. Set in a valley, with majestic views of the mountains, the Jacques Kallis Oval has a unique tradition. Any batsman scoring a century at the ground, has a tree planted beyond the ropes with a little plaque marking the achievement. Bowlers have to work harder, though and don't get a sapling unless they pick up six wickets.
Wynberg boy Jacques Kallis
Long before Kallis, however, South African stalwarts Allan Lamb and Garth le Roux benefitted from the Wynberg motto, Supera Moras, which, translated from Latin roughly means Overcome Difficulties. The school also produced Charl Willoughby and Richard Levi, aside from Hendrik Verwoerd, a former prime minister of the country and some of the best rugby and hockey players.
"I owe everything to the school, it made me the person and the cricketer I became. We weren't the richest school or the one with the best reputation but we had fellowship and everyone stuck together and supported each other," Kallis told mid-day. "It was inspiring playing in the shadow of the Table Mountain and we were always reminded of how fortunate we were, just in case we forgot. I was promoted pretty quickly and the older guys, the bowlers, gave me a torrid time in the nets, bouncers and comments, but they took care of me afterwards. That's why Wynberg is one of the four schools in my JK Foundation. I love it — always will."
Mentor Richardson
Kallis was fortunate to be mentored by Keith Richardson, headmaster at Wynberg Boys. "My first recollection of the young Kallis was in 1988. I have a clear recollection of Jacques — a really small boy batting in a helmet," recalled Richardson. "Helmets were still a novelty at that stage in school cricket and he went into the net with the comments flying - largely from the know-all first teamers who thought that they were there to impress the new recruits with their 1st X1 caps and white flannels. Jacques was impervious to these jibes — a trait which would become more evident as the years progressed." International bowlers learnt all about this trait, suffering for years against one of the great all-rounders of the modern era, but the first steps were taken at Wynberg Boys.
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