Sport has taught South African Test and ODI cricket captain Temba Bavuma a lot of principles including resilience in the face of adversity.

“It has given me a lot of teachings about life and certain virtues like patience, discipline, team work, and putting others’ interests before your own agenda. Mostly, about myself, I have learnt and seen that I can be resilient in the face of adversity. I have a focused nature about myself and how I pursue my goals but I can also be impatient and expect things to happen at my will or when I want them to.”

A strong support system has helped him navigate the highs and lows of his sporting career. “I have been able to deal and navigate everything I have had to face in the cricketing world because of the skills, resources and mindset instilled in me by my support structure. Being young and black in a predominantly white environment does have its unique challenges and it can be difficult if you find yourself alone.”

Temba was born in Langa, a township in Cape Town, and grew up there. At around age 12, his family packed up and left the township for a move to Johannesburg.
It was in Langa where he picked up his interest in sport.
“The community has a rich history in sport and entertainment. My uncles played cricket so they played a role in igniting that passion in me. Growing up I played a lot of sports like rugby, cricket and tennis but my biggest interest was soccer. That passion died a bit when we moved to Johannesburg and that is how cricket took over. I would have loved to be a professional soccer player, it’s a lot quicker playing 90 minutes than playing five days of cricket,” he laughs.

The former South African T20 International captain holds a degree in Finance that he started at the University of Johannesburg and finished through Unisa.
Having captained for the country in three cricketing formats, one would think leadership is a skillset that has always come naturally to Temba. But he says he never saw it in himself.

“I have never really seen myself as a leader, to be honest. Within the teams I played I was always one of the naughty guys; I wore the wrong clothing and I was always late. It was other people that saw that leadership in me.”

It was his first professional coach Dave Nosworthy, when Temba had joined the then Highveld Lions in 2008/9 when he was just 18 years old, that told him he would go on to become a captain.
“I didn’t take him seriously. I just chuckled at the statement but he saw what I didn’t see then. In terms of my style of leadership I have definitely grown. I enjoy the responsibility and pressure that it comes with. I don’t try to position myself as someone who has the answer and know how, I lean a lot on the guys who are better than me in different aspects of the game and try to empower them to lead within their spaces.”

Temba considers his selfless nature as a big attribute to his leadership style especially when putting other players’ interests ahead of his own.
“It is not always easy because professional sport is selfish.I think I have managed to do that well but also to my detriment at times.”

He considers himself fortunate to be in the position he is currently in; being able to live out his passion, make a living from it and change the lives of the people around him.

“It is a career that is full of ups and downs like any other career when you find yourself at the top of that level. It’s a journey that one needs to find a way to embrace and take it in stride.”

One of his career highlights is scoring his first Test century (100 runs) as captain at his home stadium in Newlands.
“Being the first black African to do so is a significant achievement and having the responsibility of being captain of the nation, that’s a big highlight in my career.”

Temba has seen many challenges in his career ‘more downs than ups’ as he puts it but for him it is all about accepting and knowing that failure and success are part of the territory. “When you fail, try to keep the emotions balanced and as in check as you can and keep the faith that things will turn in your favour. When you do succeed, even then, keep them in check. Don’t get ahead of yourself, enjoy the moment but keep pursuing your goals.”

Speaking on transformation in the sporting code, Temba says it will always be a sensitive talking point especially for those most affected by it.
“I’m not a politician, my views are not always super informed but I understand the rationale behind transformation and what it is set to achieve in terms of addressing transgressions from the past and levelling the playing field now. Giving and distributing those opportunities to those who never had, that I understand. I think something that wasn’t intended is the perception of mentalities that exist around transformation and how it is driven at times that transformation or quotas and targets are synonymous with black players who are not good enough to represent the country or are not there on merit, where merit is reserved for white players. Those are the unintended causes of transformation and those things do have an impact on players – being black, being white. There is education out in the system to give better understanding but I think the negativity behind it will always exist. I believe it is super necessary.”

Temba finds himself in a unique position as a black African batsman, something that has been rather scarce in the cricketing world.
“It comes with a bit of pressure and a certain expectation from people to exceed. When that does happen there is noise made about it and when you don’t exceed the expectations that also comes with noise and negativity that you have to be able to deal with mentally.”

As a naturally reserved person, Temba tries his best to keep his life as private as possible in an attempt to at least control what he is able to.
“I am conservative in my ways. I don’t enjoy the clout that comes with being a professional cricketer, let alone the captain of the team. I try to keep those around me away from that and all the challenges and pressures that come with it.It allows me to better deal with anything – positive or negative happening around me. My support system understands and treats me as the same old Temba.”

Being the same old Temba is an important part of his grounding especially as someone who is away from family for quite some time due to his sports commitments.
“My wife has learnt to live with it but it is not easy. I miss people who are able to see me as just Temba, not the cricketer but the young boy who would run around the streets, always naughty and getting into trouble, just wanting to have fun and see a smile on people’s faces. That’s the biggest thing I miss about the family (when I travel).”

As he gets older, it is important for Temba to look after himself more.
“Sportsmen have to do what they need to to make sure they are in the best shape possible. I am getting older now so I need to pay a lot more attention to what I put in my body, how I train and most importantly how I recover. It’s a lot more important now and I am fairly diligent in that space.”

Off the field Temba tries to do everything but cricket. He travels to see his family in Cape Town, plays a lot of golf – a sport he has grown to enjoy more and keeps his competitive juices flowing, goes out quite a bit to listen to some music and general entertainment.
“If Black Coffee is in town I will make plans to go and attend his concert. I try to do everything outside of cricket.”

He wants to be remembered as someone who was able to overcome adversity and challenges.
“I want to be remembered as someone who put others’ interests ahead of their own and someone who always played for the team. That’s how I would like to be remembered by my team and also continue being the inspiration and idol for young players within our country and the world.”

The advice he has for the young boys who are looking at him as inspiration, especially for those in the rural areas is to stay focused on their goals.
“Looking at my own journey there were challenges I had to overcome. Leaving the township and going into the suburbs and into white traditional sporting schools. The challenges one would have to overcome going there from a social point of view, not always knowing how to conduct yourself and having to adjust, that was always tough but if you are able to put your head down, stay focused on where you want to go and what your dreams are… it is possible.

“It makes it a lot easier when you have a support system around you that will support, guide and keep you in check. For me it all started with a passion and a goal of what I wanted to achieve or become.
The fact that I have been able to stay close to that dream through the passion has allowed me to endure and end up where I am. Have your dreams and stick to them as closely as you can. Pursue your dream relentlessly until it becomes a reality.”

Ultimately, Temba’s dream for the next generation is one that is full of leaders who have been empowered and are able to change the spaces they find themselves in.
“This will effectively result in the change of the country. I believe we are all dreamers but we need the mental capacity to turn our dreams into reality. That’s the generation that I look forward to and that’s part of the legacy that I would like to leave behind through my cricket.”Temba Bavuma’s ideal cricket team consists of some of the best cricketers the world has ever experienced.
They are: Sachin Tendulkah, Brian Lara, Jacques Kallis, Makhaya Ntini, Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh, Kagiso Rabada, Muttiah “Murali” Muralitharan and Quinton de Kock.

Credits:

Cover star: Temba Bavuma

Cover story: @Mane_mpi

Editor-in-Chief & Producer: @BonnieMeslane

Photographer: @AustinMalema of @_RTCStudios 

Creative Direction: @Kgosilesego & @BonnieMeslane

Wardrobe styling: @advicebykgosilesego 

Styling team: @bokangbatloung @iseng @mrsuave_dastylista 

Makeup: @CarolineGreeff

@Tumimbangi

Hair: @laid_by_lolo 

Photography Team from @_RTCstudios: Henry King  Digitech

Nkateko Masinga Lighting Director

Tyrone Jhns Retoucher 

Khotso Tsaagane Assistant

Tshepo Zitha Assistant

Production Assistant: @TumiMbangi

Studio: @NewKatzstudio