Mumbai: Former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis said he is ‘embarrassed’ to call himself South Africa after his nation banned its national cricket and rugby federations from hosting or bidding for international tournaments for at least a year due to their failure to increase their representation of black players.
"So sad that I find myself embarrassed to call myself a South African so often these days #no place for politics in sport," Kallis said.
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However, after drawing flak for his comment on Twitter, Kallis, who currently is the head coach of Kolkata Knight Riders in the ongoing Indian Premier League, pulled down his tweet and posted a reply.
"Comment y'day was re political NOT anti Transformation. 40 underprivileged boys had or having education paid for by JK foundation," Kallis posted on Twitter.
😡Comment y'day was re political bullying NOT anti Transformation. 40 underprivileged boys had or having education paid for by JK Foundation
— Jacques Kallis (@jacqueskallis75) April 26, 2016
According to a report in ESPN Cricinfo, the ban will be reviewed after the next annual report in the 2016-17 cycle and South African cricket is unlikely to be seriously affected.
The South Africa government has been pushing for more black players to be included in the nation's most popular sports but more than two decades after the end of apartheid, whites still make up the bulk of players in athletics, cricket, netball and rugby.
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I have therefore resolved to revoke the privilege of Athletics South Africa (ASA), Cricket South Africa (CSA), Netball South Africa (NSA) and South African Rugby (SAR) to host and bid for major and mega international tournaments," Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula said in a statement.
Mbalula said the athletics and netball federations were also barred from bidding to stage global events after a report showed that four of the five biggest sports have failed to create enough opportunities for black players.
The minister's decision, to be reviewed in a year's time, was a blow to South African Rugby's intention to bid for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
The country's athletics and cricket federations said they would study the report more closely before making comment.
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South Africa is scheduled to host the 2020 Cricket Under-19 World Cup. The country has seen greater participation among black players across most sports at junior level despite the challenge of providing adequate school facilities in poorer districts.
But there is a growing frustration in the African National Congress (ANC) government that some senior national teams have not reflected this trend.
The soccer federation was the only one of the five to meet its transformation targets, Mbalula said.
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He added that he would review the decision when considering the results on the 2016-17 "Transformation Barometer".
