The Story of an African Game – Black Cricketers and the Unmasking of One of Cricket’s Greatest Myths, South Africa 1850–2003 by André Odendaal

The Story of an African Game – Black Cricketers and the Unmasking of One of Cricket’s Greatest Myths, South Africa 1850–2003 by André Odendaal is a landmark work documenting the largely overlooked history of black cricket in South Africa. Published in 2003 by David Philip Publishers, this extensively researched and illustrated hardcover challenges longstanding misconceptions about the origins, development and traditions of cricket among black South Africans.

Featuring a foreword by Nelson Mandela, this important historical publication traces the development of African cricket from the middle of the nineteenth century through the eras of colonialism, segregation and apartheid to the emergence of a unified South African cricket structure in the democratic era.

Odendaal draws on historical newspaper accounts, archival records, photographs, personal recollections and extensive research to reveal a rich cricketing tradition that developed independently of the predominantly white cricket establishment. The book documents pioneering black cricket clubs, community competitions, regional associations and the determined individuals who sustained the game despite racial discrimination and political exclusion.

Particular attention is given to the contributions of black cricketing communities in the Eastern Cape, the development of organised cricket in townships and the struggles for equality in South African sport. The remarkable sporting legacy of the Majola family, especially Khaya Majola, forms an important part of this historical account.

The publication also examines the relationship between cricket, politics and social change, demonstrating how the sport became both a reflection of racial divisions and a means of community solidarity and resistance.

Produced as an official publication of the United Cricket Board of South Africa, with the involvement of the Human Sciences Research Council, this substantial illustrated volume preserves an essential chapter of South African sporting and social history.

The Story of an African Game is an important addition to collections of Africana, cricket history, apartheid-era sporting literature and South African historical research. Its combination of detailed scholarship, historical photographs and Nelson Mandela’s foreword makes it particularly appealing to collectors, historians and readers interested in the broader cultural significance of cricket in South Africa.

Condition – Very Good

Very good hardcover in a very good dust jacket showing edge and shelf wear. Brown boards with moderate wear, particularly along the lower edges. Small area of cloth loss to the rear board. Light spotting and surface wear to the boards. Foxing present.