Jewish South African Cricket Legend ‘Disgusted’ by Sacking of U19 Captain Over Support for Israel

An iconic South African Jewish cricket player, Mandy Yachad, is condemning the decision on Friday by Cricket South Africa, the governing body of the sport in the country, to strip the captaincy from the Proteas Under-19 leader, David Teeger.“I am disgusted, but not surprised by the decision to sack him as captain,” Mr. Yachad* tells the Sun. Only last month he had come to the defense of Mr. Teeger. The sacking comes just days after it was demanded of CSA by South Africa’s Palestine Solidarity Alliance. At issue are comments Mr. Teeger, who is Jewish, made at an awards ceremony just weeks after Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel, killing some 1,200 Israelis and taking 240 captive. As he accepted the Rising Star of the Absa Jewish Achiever Awards at a gala event on October 22, he offered brief, unprepared remarks, dedicating his award to Israel’s soldiers. “The true rising stars are the young soldiers in Israel,” he said. “So I’d like to dedicate this award to the South African family that married off one son whilst the other is still missing. And I’d like to dedicate it to the state of Israel and to every single soldier fighting so that we can live and thrive in the diaspora.”Weeks later, in a letter dated November 17, the Palestine Solidarity Alliance demanded that CSA suspend Mr. Teeger, charging that his remarks were “provocative and inflammatory.” In response, CSA announced that it was launching an independent investigation. The PSA is a vocal supporter of Hamas and described the October 7 attacks on Israel as “encouraging.”Mr. Teeger, who turned 19 on Thursday, is head boy of King Edward VII School, keeps kosher, and observes Shabbat. Last summer, he played in the 50-over series in Bangladesh, his first international cricket tour, South Africa’s Jewish Report said. He captained the team in most of the matches, and was the top scorer in the series.Days after the inquiry was launched, Mr. Yachad, who played cricket for South Africa in the 1990s and who’s tzitzit worn at play were added in July to an exhibition at London’s Lord’s Cricket Ground, issued an open letter calling attention to the hypocrisy of the cricket authorities. Charging that the stance taken by CSA “smacks of bias and double standards,” Mr. Yachad said that he would no longer attend matches under the auspices of the CSA. He noted that there have “been a number of prominent — in fact, far more prominent than 18-year-old Teeger — cricketers” who have voiced “support for Palestine and the Palestinian people.”“Were these statements of support considered by the CSA to be ‘provocative and inflammatory’? Did it contemplate instituting an inquiry into these statements?” Mr. Yachad asked. Prominent cricketers who have in the past expressed support for Palestinian Arabs include a former captain, Hashim Amla, and an international star, Kagiso Rabada.On December 5, high-profile advocate Wim Trengove published an Adjudicator’s Determination, finding that Mr. Teeger had not violated any clauses of the CSA code in his remarks, nor had he engaged in “hate speech.” No further action was taken at that timeA month later, on January 4, PSA issued a statement on its social media accounts threatening to “disrupt the forthcoming tour if Teeger is not removed as captain.” The group dismissed the independent inquiry as a “cop out.” On Friday, CSA announced the removal of Mr. Teeger, insisting that it was for his own safety. “We have also been advised that they are likely to focus on the position of the SA Under-19 captain, David Teeger and that there is a risk that they could result in conflict or even violence, including between rival groups of protestors,” CSA said. Others who responded to the decision included the national chairman of the South African Zionist Federation, Rowan Polovin. He said the decision to strip Mr. Teeger of his captaincy was among the “antisemitic consequences of the ANC Government fostering a climate of antisemitism in South Africa.”An official at Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Emmanuel Nahshon, said on X, formerly Twitter, “Teeger is Jewish and pro Israel. For the South African authorities that’s reason enough to remove him from his captain’s position. Another demonstration of shameful hypocrisy.” Mr. Teeger himself has refrained from commenting publicly on the matter.Kevin Youkilis, a Jewish athlete who played baseball for the Boston Red Sox, also expressed solidarity with Mr. Teeger. “Heart goes out to this young Jewish man,” he wrote on X. “The ‘security risk’ excuse is bulls—. They’ll try to punish and silence us but we will stand up!”A prominent commentator, Piers Morgan, also chimed in. “WTF!?” he wrote on X. “Have they sacked him because he’s Jewish? This is shameful moral cowardice by Cricket South Africa.”________* Mr. Yachad’s son is married to the sister of the author.

Jewish South African Cricket Legend ‘Disgusted’ by Sacking of U19 Captain Over Support for Israel

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