A born leader, Cronje, the son of former Free State cricketer Ewie Cronje, was tagged as a future national cricket captain while still at school at Bloemfontein’s renowned Grey College. He played three years for Free State Schools and two years for the South African Schools team, captaining the side in 1987 with his close friend Jonty Rhodes as vice-captain.
In the same year, he made his debut for the senior Free State team against Transvaal in Johannesburg.
Cronje quickly established himself as a player to be reckoned with, and when South Africa made its foray back into international cricket in 1991 in India, he was chosen to accompany the side for the experience.
Hansie led the team with great skill and prowess, leading from the front, with both bat and ball. With the bat, he averaged 36.41 in the longer version of the game, with six centuries which came when the chips were down. In one-dayers, he performed better, with an average of 38.64, and a strike rate of 76.48. He was particularly destructive against the slower bowlers, and was one of the few South Afrcians who could read Shane Warne. He was also a useful medium-pace bowler with more than a hundred one-day wickets.Cronje played in 68 Tests for South Africa, leading his country on 53 occasions. He scored 3 714 runs at an average of 36.41 and captured 43 wickets but it was the intangibles of his leadership and toughness that really stood out.
On 1 June 2002 Cronje's scheduled flight home from Bloemfontein to George had been grounded so instead he hitched a ride as the only passenger on a cargo flight in a Hawker Siddeley 748 turboprop aircraft. Near George airport, the pilots lost visibility in cloud, and were unable to land, partly due to unserviceable navigational equipment. While circling, the plane crashed into the Outeniqua mountains northeast of the airport. Cronje, aged 32, and the two pilots were killed instantly
No comments:
Post a Comment