Firdose Moonda, ESPN Cricinfo - A deep dive into South African cricket, on and off the field

There’s been a lot going on in South African cricket circles lately, both on and off the field, and who better to help us make sense of it all than ESPN Cricinfo’s Southern Africa correspondent Firdose Moonda, who’s been leading the cricket coverage in the region during this challenging time. In this fascinating deep dive into all things cricket in South Africa, we start by discussing the men's side's most recent series, and how difficult it was to assess the team's performance against a Sri Lankan squad decimated by injuries. We talk promising debutants, Quinton de Kock's leadership, the search for a Test captain, changes under Mark Boucher and why Faf du Plessis can't keep his shirt on. As we transition to the boardroom, Firdose takes us through the fallout from the Fundudzi report and we learn how close South Africa was to losing official international status. She frankly discusses communication breakdowns and a lack of cohesion as we explore transformation targets, the Black Lives Matter response, next steps, and the impact of the boardroom on the players and fans. Firdose's in-depth insight into the challenges South African cricket governance have to face, and how well they are currently navigating that path, is absolutely fascinating. We finish the show by taking a look at what's next on the field, starting with the women's team hosting Pakistan as the men head in the opposite direction for two Tests and three T20s - their first tour to Pakistan in 14 years and one that's shaping as a very interesting series as we assess where both sides fit in the Test hierarchy. You can find Firdose's work at Cricinfo at https://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/story/author.html?author=315 - her back catalogue includes further details about many of the topics we discussed on the show. If you're a new listener to the podcast, check out our back catalogue. There's plenty more great interviews with current players, legends, journalists and characters from all over the cricketing world. Please take the time to give us a like, follow, share or subscribe on all our channels ( @toporderpod on Twitter and Facebook & @thetoporderpodcast on Instagram) and a (5-Star!) review at your favourite podcast provider. It really helps others find the show. And if you'd like to reach out to us with feedback, questions or guest suggestions, email us at thetoporderpodcast@gmail.com or reach out to us on any of our social channels. Thanks for listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices