In an extract from his new book, Geoff Lemon recalls the moment Australia’s sporting reputation was scuffed forever
You know it’s serious when Mluleki Ntsabo isn’t smiling. The South African Broadcasting Corporation commentator is small in stature and huge in energy, beaming a high-wattage grin as he booms away in English on the main mics or Xhosa on the update line. But as I walked into the broadcast area on the third afternoon of the Cape Town Test in March 2018, he came bouncing round the doorway behind me like a rubber ball, rebounding off the far wall, his face stern as he rushed along. “Did you see?” he asked with urgency. “Cameron Bancroft has something on the ball.”
We piled into our commentary box where the ABC and SABC were running a joint broadcast. On the gantry outside our window were the three lead Supersport camera operators, adjusting and aiming their artillery-sized lenses, making fine calibrations beyond our understanding. They were chattering away on their walkie-talkies, coordinating with the other cameras all around the ground. There were close to 30 cameras overall, each with a part to play.
Written by Geoff Lemon
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/nov/14/caught-on-tape-the-story-behind-australian-crickets-greatest-fall under the title “
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