TRUE BRITS – how South Africa’s star batter Tazmin Brits got her groove back

After South Africa played England in the T20 World Cup semi-final at the Oval, a couple of the Proteas stars popped up in the mixed zone. Most of the journos swerved the losing pair, preferring to wait for the England victors. But I was very glad I ventured over. Because sometimes a post-match chat can take you by surprise with its candour and insight. Not to mention self-examination. Chatting with ace batter Tazmin Brits was exactly this…

Everyone is on a journey, but the incredible batter Tazmin Brits has been on multiple journeys in not just cricket, but three other sports too. Not to mention suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, and coming out the other side. Not unscathed, of course, but definitely stronger.

Totally unrelated, Brits has been known to celebrate her centuries by miming bringing out an arrow from a quiver, and firing it out into the crowd. And having scored multiple centuries in one-day internationals, she’s not short of practice with her trusty imaginary bow!

In the semi-final against England, Brits scored an impressive 51. Against the Netherlands she got 114. And she piled on 40 against India and 20 against Bangladesh. She’s second behind England’s Danni Wyatt-Hodge in the most runs in the T20 World Cup, with 225, top in highest innings, and has an incredible batting average of 75.

But why, when the South Africa cricket team have only just secured their spot in the LA Olympics in 2028, does Brits already have the full five Olympic rings tattoo on her right arm (in fact, you can see part of it above)? Read on for the answer to this and much more in our full chat…

Your performance today was really good, but it was still not enough to save the whole semi-final.

So how would you assess yours – and the team’s – performances across the whole tournament?

It’s a difficult one.

If I’m going to be honest, it’s a bit of a liquorice allsorts.

I mean, we didn’t really click and it’s actually scary because we managed to get to a semi-final.

And a lot of times to finals… without actually clicking.

So it’s actually scary to think if we do click.

But yeah, I don’t know.

We’re going to have to find a way because it’s either the power play that works very well and then we let it go…

Or with the batting, there’s one or two partnerships, but no one carries on, to get to those 80s and those hundreds.

So yeah, we have to find a way to make sure it clicks a bit better.

What do you think are the bits that stop it being just ‘allsorts’ and make it click?

I think maybe not having a plan.

I think often you go out there and you maybe think the wicket plays this way, but maybe not having a look at what the wicket actually does or maybe not having to change a game.

A lot of people stay in the comfort [zone of] ability and sometimes you need more.

So yeah, I don’t know.

I think maybe just sometimes you’ve got to sit down and just watch the things a bit better and not just be so, you know…

Improvisational?

Yeah, a lot of times that happens.

Are you the sort of person who would now go back – because I know they do in some sports – and watch the match again and look at things you could have done differently?

Yeah, I do that after every single game, because a lot of times I don’t even remember how I played, even the hundred that I made, I can’t remember a lot of those shots.

So I do go and look.

Sometimes you look to make yourself feel better because you scored the 100 and sometimes you look to improve yourself to make sure that you can score again.

So yeah, definitely we’ll have a look at those games.

Tell me more about the fact that you didn’t get to the Olympics before, when you were meant to, but had a terrible accident.

Yeah, I had a car accident.

I used to be a world champ javelin thrower.

I had a car accident, broke my pelvis in four places, burst my bladder and everything.

So I’ve got screws and funny things going on in here.

So yeah, I didn’t go to the 2012 London Olympics.

I’m trying to think who would have been the javelin champion then, can you remember?

Well, from South Africa, Sunette Viljoen went.

Can you remember who won the gold medal?

No, I can’t remember that.

Have you tried to erase all that from your mind?

Pretty much. Yeah.

So did you ever go back to javelin again or not?

I actually did.

After the car accident, it took me seven months just to start walking again.

But yeah, I did try and make a comeback.

I think it was that January and March.

I played a bit of club cricket.

I played cricket in primary school but didn’t play later on.

And then I played a bit because I was very suicidal as well.

I tried to commit suicide a few times.

And then my friend said just go join cricket, you know, a bit more of a team sport, because javelin was very individual.

And I played and I started scoring runs and the one thing led to another and I started throwing javelin again that January, and that March I got the call up to represent South Africa.

So funny how God turns your life around…

That’s amazing, though, to go from being absolutely brilliant in one sport to being absolutely brilliant in another… that’s rare, isn’t it?

Yeah, I mean, I’m very blessed.

I think I’m probably the only one who has South African colours in four things.

I also got chosen for SA Under-21 hockey.

Also went to Longest Drive World Championships in Mesquite, Las Vegas, came third there, with the golf, so yeah, I’m very blessed in that sense.

So you were good at field hockey… what position did you play?

Centre-link.

I didn’t go though, because of mostly SASHOC (the governing body, South African Schools Hockey).

And you couldn’t sign a contract then, because you can’t do two sports.

I see.

So I ended up not going, because that’s when I actually stayed with the javelin, and then from the javelin it was cricket.

But during that time when I was in Jo’burg, I went to the world champs with golf.

I feel they should build a statue, and have representations of all your sports around you… Thank you, and so nice to meet you.

You too!

Photos: ICC