Alcohol abuse by some of the South African cricketers was a cause of their poor
performance during the recent ICC World Cup in the West Indies, observes
Adrian le Roux, the former fitness trainer of the team.
"In my opinion, the use of alcohol within the national team is a problem.
This does not include all the players, but it does include players who play a
vital role within the team," said Le Roux in the latest issue of 'The Wisden
Cricketer'.
Drinking alcohol inside the 72-hour period before a match "would not allow
the body to function in its normal capacity ... (and would be) a contributing
factor to muscle cramping," he said.
Captain Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers suffered from
crippling cramping during World Cup matches and the team came in for criticism
after some of them were seen drowning their sorrows in the early hours following
a loss to New Zealand.
Le Roux, who resigned perhaps because he felt his reputation
was at stake after the players suffered cramp, said cramping was the direct
result of the use of alchohol.
He become increasingly frustrated when some players refused to take seriously
his advice of 72-hour "alcohol curfew" before matches.
"Some players are simply not mature and responsible enough," he claimed.
"I felt confident (before the tournament) that, apart
from Roger Telemachus, all players in the squad were physically ready for the
challenge of a two-month tournament." South Africa, then number
one ODI team in the ICC rankings, were defeated by Bangladesh in the second
round of the World Cup.
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