Cape Town – 14 May 2025 – There are stories that shimmer with nostalgia, steeped in the dust of schoolyard dreams. And then there are those that burst through the smoke of braais and the grit of broken streets, charging forward like a fast bowler on a fifth-day pitch. This is one of those stories.
We’re sitting in a popular coffee shop in Cape Town just a stone’s throw away from the iconic Newlands Cricket Ground, sipping coffee and reminiscing. The memories come in waves — taped tennis balls whacked into Boeta Majid Galant’s yard, scoreboard duty at Newlands for the reward of a 250ml glass bottle of dumpy Coke and a slice of fruitcake, two boys from Devon Road, Lansdowne, chasing an impossible dream.
Proteas coach Shukri Conrad’s shares his remarkable journey to the summit of Test Cricket
Shukri Conrad, the current Proteas head coach in all formats, is preparing to lead his national team to the World Test Championship Final at Lord’s in London this June. But for a moment, we’re just neighbours again: No. 65 and No. 67.
“When you talk about those drain covers, we used as wickets,” he says, smiling as if he’d just bowled a googly past the backyard stumps, “I get goosebumps. That’s where it was all carved out. Those weren’t just games. That was our coaching clinic, our proving ground. We didn’t have YouTube, Tik Tok, Instagram or Facebook. We had imagination.”
And imagination served him well.
A cricketer forged on the Cape Flats
Shukri Conrad Pic: SA Cricket
Born into a family of cricketers, the game was not just in Conrad’s blood; it was in the very rhythm of his neighbourhood. His late father Dickie Conrad, grandfather Karriem (Kokkie) Conrad and uncles from his late mother’s Dollie family were all practitioners of the gentleman’s game. But it was more than legacy — it was love, passion, obsession. As kids, we played until the Cape Town wind chased the sun away, imitating our heroes with every flick of the wrist and every bowling stride.
“Back then,” Conrad reflects, “we didn’t know it, but we were already learning about pressure, strategy, resilience — and leadership.”
Fast forward nearly five decades, and those same qualities have propelled him into cricket’s rarefied air. Named South Africa’s men’s Test team coach in January 2023, Conrad did more than steady a ship; he reshaped its course. His emphasis on clarity, belief, and accountability transformed the Test team from inconsistent performers to finalists on cricket’s grandest stage.
At the end of January 2025 came the ultimate personal accolade: being named Wisden’s Cricket Coach of the Year – one of the sport’s most prestigious honours. True to form, he downplayed it.
“Somebody had to get it,” he chuckles. “Might as well be me.” But beneath the modesty lies genuine pride—not just in himself, but in the people, who’ve stood beside him.
From bowling coach Piet Botha to batting coach Ashwell Prince, whose personal tragedy of losing his wife did not dampen his contribution, to physio Sizwe Hadebe and team manager Khomotso Volvo Masubelele—Conrad insists the award belongs to all of them. And the players?
They tease him with a post-match song: “Shukri Conrad… we make you look good!” And they do.
In early May 2025, following Rob Walter’s departure, Conrad was appointed to lead South Africa in all formats — a rare, sweeping vote of confidence that speaks volumes of Cricket South Africa’s faith in his vision.
“Yeah, it does make life easier,” Conrad admitted. “You like to use the word ‘total control,’ but it’s more about having a complete view of where each player is — physically, mentally — across formats. I think it makes our team stronger, more coherent.”
His new dual role arrives with high expectations. “I don’t want to do things differently just for the sake of it. Rob laid a solid foundation. My job is to build on that — take what worked in the Test arena and replicate it in the white-ball space. The planning’s already underway,” he said, referencing conversations he’s had with South African players currently competing abroad.
Shukri’s shared parallels with Rassie’s rugby revolution
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus and Shukri Conrad shared ideas. Pic: SA Rugby
During the Test series against Pakistan earlier this year, Conrad received a quiet knock on his hotel door. It wasn’t a selector, analyst, or player. It was Rassie Erasmus — the Springbok coach, rugby maverick, and double World Cup-winning mastermind. What began as a casual visit turned into a two-and-a-half-hour masterclass of shared philosophy.
“There was no ego,” Conrad says. “Just two South African coaches, around a fire, talking about getting the best out of our players. Rassie said something that stuck with me: ‘Create your own reality.’ And I realised, that’s exactly what we’ve been doing.”
Both men, known for their unconventional methods, see sport through a lens coloured by transformation, unity, and raw honesty. They are architects of culture as much as coaches of players.
“We didn’t talk tactics or formations,” Conrad laughs. “We talked about belief, about giving kids from Lansdowne or Zwide a reason to dream.”
The Rassie Connection – Two Mavericks, One Mission
The parallels between Erasmus and Conrad are striking. Both took charge amid criticism. Both saw the leadership potential in black captains—Siya Kolisi in rugby, Temba Bavuma in cricket—and didn’t flinch in the face of backlash. Both came into their roles with eyes on a long-term vision—Rassie’s aimed at the 2023 World Cup, Shukri’s at the 2027 Test Championship—but found accelerated success.
“Rassie said something that stuck with me,” Conrad reflects. “‘You create your own reality.’ That’s what we’re doing now. The Springboks are number one, and we’re chasing that same standard.”
The conversation wasn’t just strategic; it was deeply philosophical. How do you build warriors in your team? How do you stitch together players of different cultures, creeds, and characters into one fabric that can stand firm under fire? These weren’t rugby or cricket problems. They were South African problems, tackled with shared humility.
Conrad plans to return the favour—spending time with the Springboks during their build-up to the next test series. “Imagine Temba and Siya, KG (Rabada) and Eben (Etzebeth) connecting—not just as captains or athletes, but as symbols. That’s the power of sport.”
The Temba decision
Temba Bavuma Proteas Test Captain Pic: Supplied
Much like Rassie’s bold move to name Siya Kolisi as captain of the Springboks in 2018, Conrad made a decisive call when he handed the red-ball team’s captaincy to Temba Bavuma. It was not, he insists, a political move — it was intuitive.
“I didn’t want a black captain. I wanted this captain,” Conrad says firmly. “Temba is calm, considered, and unifying. He was what the team needed. His race was a fact, not the reason.”
That call, like many others Conrad has made, reflects a deeper belief in character over currency. “You can play the most beautiful cover drive, but if you’ve got no fight in you, I don’t need you in my XI,” he says. “Give me a warrior.”
Of Warriors and Lords
The word “warrior” keeps surfacing — a nod to Erasmus, yes, but also a mission statement for this Proteas team. They head into the WTC Final as the less experienced side, facing the battle-hardened Aussies. But under Conrad, they don’t do underdog stories. They do belief.
“I don’t care if they’ve got more caps. I care that our guys — KG, Temba, Marco (Jansen) — believe they can win. That’s the only stat I need.”
Lord’s — the cathedral of cricket — awaits. Conrad calls it “the heart of the game.” He’s been there before, but never like this. This time, he enters the Long Room as the man tasked with bringing Test cricket’s holy grail home to South Africa.
“Just being there is a blessing. But I’m not going there to admire the paintings,” he says with a glint in his eye. “We’re going there to win.”
Home still matters
And yet, no matter how high he climbs, the Cape Flats are never far behind.
“When I look back,” he says, “I always see the faces. You, me, our neighbour Brian Wentzel, Faiek Davids, my mate Randall Christoffels. The families. The aunties on the stoep. That’s the soul of my story. That’s why I do this.”
He wants young South Africans — particularly those not born into privilege — to see the line of sight. From a dusty Devon Road to a balcony at Lord’s.
“You can be from Lansdowne. From Mitchells Plain. From Wynberg. From Grassy Park. And still wear the green and gold. We need to talk up our heroes. Why should my son only know Mitchell Starc? He should know Kagiso Rabada. Ryan Rickelton. Dewald Brevis. These are our warriors.”
The final word
Shukri Conrad’s journey isn’t just one of personal triumph. It’s a testament to the power of dreams rooted in place, in people, in memory. It’s a story that began on a narrow road with concrete drains for wickets and has now reached the grand lawns of Lord’s.
It is, above all, a South African story — complex, colourful, courageous.
As we finish our conversation, I think back to the boy who once peeked his head out the scoreboard window at Newlands, chasing a glimpse of himself on TV. He doesn’t need to peek anymore. The whole cricketing world is watching.
Now, the Lords stage awaits.
And come June 11th, they’ll be watching our Proteas on the hallowed turf of Lords — led by a coach from Lower Devon Road in Lansdowne — take on the Aussies in a battle of belief, grit, and glory.
As South Africa prepares for the ultimate showdown against Australia, a team that has historically been their tormentor in the longest format, Conrad remains clear-eyed about the challenge.
“We’ve got a squad of fighters,” he said. “Young talent blended with experience. They know what’s at stake. Lords isn’t just another venue — it’s cricket’s cathedral. And we’re not going there to admire the architecture.”
Win or lose, the symbolism of a man from the Cape Flats leading South Africa into a World Test Championship final cannot be overstated. It’s about more than sport. It’s about history, identity, and the power of representation.
“You don’t forget where you come from,” Conrad said. “Devon Road will always be home. But I want every kid from there to see this moment and believe — if I can do it, so can they.”
From Lansdowne to Lord’s, Shukri Conrad has already won. The final scorecard in London will only be the epilogue.
Squads for WTC Final:
South Africa – Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, Tony de Zorzi, Temba Bavuma (capt), Tristan Stubbs, David Bedingham, Wiaan Mulder, Kyle Verreynne, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Dane Paterson, Senuran Muthusamy, Corbin Bosch
Australia – Pat Cummins (capt), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster
