Proteas coach Mark Boucher’s confirmation that he will leave the post after this year’s T20I World Cup in Australia next month is driven by several factors.

Boucher, who will depart with a year left on his current contract, is sought after by several T20 Leagues. Daily Maverick has learnt he will take up the position of head coach at the Mumbai Indians (MI) Cape Town in the new SA20 League set for early next year.

The player auction for the SA20 League takes place on 19 September and Boucher will certainly have to play a role in deciding which players the franchise bids for.

And according to reports out of India, following the SA20, which runs from January to February 2023, Boucher will then take up a post in the Indian Premier League (IPL). No details on which team he might join have been made yet.

From a financial standpoint a coaching gig in the IPL could amount to a year’s wages as a national coach – and it comes with less stress. But his decision won’t have been made in isolation. After three-and-half-years as Proteas coach, through the most tumultuous time in South African cricket, a pandemic and sustained personal attacks, it’s a surprise he lasted this long.

Upward trend

Boucher’s tenure as Proteas coach has been trending upwards, despite the recent Test series loss in England. His team are currently second on the World Test Championship log and have climbed up the T20 ranks.

Boucher has held the position since December 2019, and led the Proteas to 11 Test wins, including a memorable 2-1 series victory over India at home in January this year.

In the limited-overs arena, Boucher has helped South Africa claim 12 One-Day International wins, and 23 T20 International victories, the most recent being a historic 2-1 series triumph against England. He could yet end his tenure with a World Cup.

“Mr Boucher has decided to resign in order to pursue other opportunities in line with his future career and personal objectives,” a statement from Cricket South Africa (CSA) read.

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“While Cricket SA greatly regrets that Mr Boucher is unable to see out the term of his contract, it respects his decision and wishes him all the best in his future endeavours.”

CSA director of cricket Enoch Nkwe said: “We are deeply saddened by Mark’s decision to leave us, but we also understand and respect his wishes. He is a Proteas legend and has done so much for the game in our country, both on the field and over the last three years off it, which we highly appreciate.  

“He has built a sound platform for South Africa to flourish in all three formats and I’m sure we will see the results of that at the T20 World Cup next month. He has a settled squad already, one that is growing in confidence, and we look forward to watching them in their important series in India before they head to Australia.” 

Mark Boucher speaks to Heinrich Klaasen of the Titans during a training session in Pretoria on 14 November 2016. Boucher is sought after by several T20 Leagues. (Photo: Lee Warren / Gallo Images)

With a more personal tone, CSA chief executive Pholetsi Moseki told Sport24.com: “To be honest, we were expecting him to be around until the ODI World Cup in India next year. When he engaged with us, it was quite a shock in that sense.

“You can’t begrudge him for wanting to pursue other opportunities, like he said he wanted. At least we agreed that he finishes after the T20 World Cup in Australia.”

The news has left CSA scrambling to find a successor, since they had not bargained on needing a new coach for a three-Test tour to Australia later this year and into next year, which includes an ODI World Cup in India.

Painful relationship

But the relationship between Boucher and CSA soured in the past year. When CSA announced they had brought “gross misconduct” charges against Boucher during a series against India in January this year, it was clear any cordiality between the parties had evaporated.

CSA tried to defend the timing of the statement to haul Boucher into a disciplinary hearing on flimsy evidence, as being in the interests of transparency.

Read more in Daily Maverick: “Boucher’s ‘gross misconduct’ hearing clouds the future for Proteas”

India had three days left of their tour, and another 72 hours would have made no material difference to the charges or the circumstances. But it would have avoided a media circus at the back end of what had been a fabulous summer of cricket for Boucher and his team.

However, whether by design or incompetence, CSA managed to take the focus off cricket and back into the realm of politics and one-upmanship with one ill-timed press release.

Obviously Boucher knew he was coming up on charges as he’d been made aware a week before the statement. So, it was unnecessary to make such a public spectacle, unless the intention was to cause maximum angst and embarrassment.

Boucher had been accused of three acts of gross misconduct and the basis of each charge was that his actions were underpinned by racial discrimination.

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Those charges were based on the “tentative findings” of last year’s hearings into past racial discrimination in cricket – the Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) hearings.

The SJN was chaired by advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza SC and in the months after it closed and since an “interim report” was tacitly accepted by the CSA board, controversy has followed.

Basing a disciplinary charge on a “tentative finding” that came out of a flawed process, was the legal own goal. Naturally the case collapsed and CSA was left in an uncomfortable position.

In early May, CSA’s own lawyers concluded that “none of the three charges were sustainable”. Those charges were contained in the seven-page charge sheet presented to Boucher in January. 

That setback for CSA came just weeks after it lost an arbitration case with costs against former director of cricket Graeme Smith over similar findings of “tentative racism” in the SJN.

“I welcome the decision of CSA to unreservedly withdraw all charges against me,” Boucher said in a statement on 10 May. “The allegations of racism which were levelled against me were unjustified and have caused me considerable hurt and anguish.

“The last few months have been extremely difficult to endure for me and my family. I am glad that the process has finally come to an end and that CSA has accepted that the charges against me are unsustainable.”

Read more in Daily Maverick: “More problems for Cricket SA as Social Justice and Nation Building findings are branded ‘flawed’”

The true extent of the wounds inflicted during that particularly tough period will only be known to Boucher and his family. Although he has carried on for a few months since having his name cleared, it wouldn’t be human if he didn’t still harbour some suspicion and anger towards CSA.

And there are almost certainly members of the CSA hierarchy who remained unhappy with Boucher’s continued employment. 

The minute those charges were brought against Boucher, the clock began ticking towards the end of the relationship between the parties. Once the legal dance concluded it was inevitable that Boucher would not see out his contract.

All he needed was a different challenge, which has come in the form of the expanding global T20 market. DM