“I had to wait until 2 or 3 AM before one of the white officials took me home. Vusi’s nightmare.

VusiMuzi Sibanda tells us a story of humour, honesty and sadness. Tall and elegant at the crease, Vusi Sibanda’s trademark cover drives and muscular pull shots were a pure delight to watch. He starts off by telling Dean du Plessis about him and his opening partner and good friend Tino Mawoyo missing a flight to the West Indies in 2013. He bravely admits that the pace of Brett Lee unnerved him. He admits that approaching milestones such as 50s and hundreds often made him circumspect which lead to him playing poor shots and giving his wicket away. But Vusi’s story is also tinged with sadness as he relates a session much worse than the searing pace of Brett Lee, as he was made to sing racial discrimination songs in the official’s car in the early hours of the morning. He was called names, made to feel uncomfortable with the fact that he was the only black player in the invitational team he was picked to play in. At the age of 17 a traumatised Vusi Sibanda nearly gave up playing the game before he even started, due to one man’s bitter taunts and hatred. This is an interview with humour, honesty and sadness.