The 43-year-old ex-Proteas pacer, played alongside the likes of Shaun Pollock, Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher and Lance Klusener among others, spoke about his experience in the wake of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement which gathered momentum following the death of African-American George Floyd.

“I was forever lonely at the time,” recalled Ntini in an interview with ‘South African Broadcasting Corporation’.
“Nobody knocked on my door to go for dinner. Teammates used to make plans right in front of me, skipping me out. When walking into the breakfast room, nobody came to sit with me.

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“We wear the same uniform and sing the same national anthem, but I had to overcome (the isolation),” he added.
To deal with the isolation, Ntini even avoided travelling on the team bus.

“I used to see the driver of the team bus, give him my bag, and then I would run to the cricket ground. I did the same thing on the way back, I just ran back instead,” said Ntini who claimed 390 Test and 266 ODI wickets.

“People never understood why I did that, I never told them what I was trying to avoid. It became my best thing, I didn’t have to face any of it.”

“I was running away from the loneliness. If I was sitting at the back of the bus, they would go and sit at the front. Whenever we won, it was joyful but I was the first to be blamed whenever we lost.” Ntini also claimed that his son Thando also faced racism.

“My son Thando has also experienced this, he was almost stopped from going on an U19 camp (on false pretenses),” he said.

On Tuesday, Ntini, along with 30 former cricketers, signed a statement in support of the BLM movement, saying racism remains part of the game in the country.

In the statement, the former cricketers also threw their weight behind current South Africa pacer Lungi Ngidi, who was recently criticised by ex-Proteas like Pat Symcox and Boeta Dippenar for supporting the BLM campaign.

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US President Donald Trump retweeted a video showing one of his supporters in Florida shouting “white power” at the protesters of his administration. It drew rebukes from allies and adversaries as protests continue a month after George Floyd’s death.

The retweeted video which was later deleted from the president’s feed triggered an immediate backlash. The tweet was widely criticized for being racist and insensitive, and again demonstrated the president’s willingness to use social media for sharing some of the most hateful commentary of some of his followers, even at the time of national unrest.

Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, the only Black Republican senator, called the video “offensive” and asked Trump to take it off his Twitter page.

However, White House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement that Trump is a big fan of the villages and the president did not hear the offensive chant.

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West Indies cricketers will wear a ‘Black Lives Matter’ logo on the collars of their jerseys during the upcoming three-Test series against England to protest against racism in sports and to raise awareness regarding equality.

Skipper Jason Holder, who has voiced his support to the cause, said in a statement on Sunday they arrived at the decision to wear the logo after much thought.

“We did not take our decision lightly. We know what it is for people to make judgments because of the colour of our skin, so we know what it feels like, this goes beyond the boundary. There must be equality and there must be unity. Until we get that as people, we cannot stop,” he said. “We have to find some way to have equal rights and people must not be viewed differently because of the colour of their skin or ethnic background.”

The ICC approved the logo, designed by Alisha Hosannah, is the same one which featured in the shirts of all 20 Premier League football clubs since the sport’s resumption earlier this month.

The West Indies players are likely to wear the shirts for the first time in this week’s four-day warm-up match at Emirates Old Trafford, starting on Monday. A three-match Test series between England and West Indies will mark international cricket’s resumption at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on July 8.

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