Friday, 24th August 2007 at 7:10 pm

Cricket South Africa: act of genius

They delayed the decision after the initial hearing, but finally it’s been revealed, another stellar moment for South African cricket. Mark Boucher, for the act of standing up for his best friend, has been fined (wait for it) 60% of his match fees for the upcoming Twenty20 World Cup. That’s right, for pointing out to Business Day that leaving Jacques Kallis out of the World Cup squad was a disgrace - hardly an act of clairvoyancy - Boucher will lose three fifths of his salary for next month’s tournament.

The official line will be that Boucher contravened the code of conduct, a wonderfully Orwellian charter used to box in players whenever they think of straying away from the official line on anything cricket related. Spirit in the camp is good, guys are giving 110%, we’re all up for the big game - such mundane cliche is all well and good. But dare to suggest that the selectors have made fools of themselves (something we were already well aware of), and the judicial mechanics of the game are brought into play extremely quickly.

How Boucher responds will be interesting: Feverpitcher would love an open, honest response from the combative ‘keeper, but if he wants to stay on with South Africa, he’ll keep his peace - for now. With Kallis considering his options, Boucher may well look to do likewise, casting the spectre of a shuddering double blow onto the local game. We await with interest; for now, Boucher can at least take solace from the fact that he’ll be making 40% more from the Twenty20 World Cup than Kallis…