Boucher will address Paul Adams racism allegations when he is ‘back in SA’
Proteas coach Mark Boucher says he will appropriately address any issues that concern him from Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) transformation public hearings when he is back in the country.
Boucher and the Proteas are currently in Ireland where they are scheduled to play the last T20 match against their hosts on Saturday and are expected back in South Africa next week.
On Thursday‚ former Proteas spinner Paul Adams testified under oath at the hearings to investigate racial discrimination within cricket that Boucher and other white national team-mates called him a ‘brown shit’.
Adams‚ who at some stages in his international career was the only black player in the Proteas‚ and at others in the minority‚ recounted many instances where he experienced discrimination and racism in the national cricket set-up.
Asked to comment on the matter after he was mentioned by Adams in his testimony‚ Boucher told TimesLive on Friday morning that he would address the issues when he returns to the country‚ and after he had received a detailed account of them.
“Due to my commitments as Proteas’ head coach and the fact that I have been out of the country throughout the SJN hearings‚ I have not been able to follow the testimonies that have been made and am‚ therefore‚ not in a position to comment on issues that have been raised‚” he said in a statement.
“At the moment my full focus and energy is concentrated on the Proteas and the final match of their tour of Ireland tomorrow [Saturday].
“Once I have returned to South Africa‚ I will address any issues that concern me appropriately after I have had the opportunity to get a detailed account of them. Until such time I will be making no comment on the matter.”
Adams‚ who took 134 wickets in 45 Test matches and 29 wickets in 24 ODIs‚ said he came out to testify because he could no longer stay silent.
“I am just highlighting that these things should never happen and if we take this forward in the right way we will have a lot more respect for each other. Maybe he [Boucher] should come and say sorry‚ maybe that’s all that needs to happen.
“It is something that should not be brushed under the carpet. We should air it‚ if we want our teams within CSA to have the right ethics‚ the right mentality‚ the right respect for one another‚ we should air these things.”