Sibusiso Mjikeliso | Boucher's position strengthened under DC cloud after Proteas claw two magnificent comebacks

With a winning team behind him, head coach Mark Boucher’s position ahead of his 16 May disciplinary looks stronger than it did before after the Proteas clawed two magnificent Test series comebacks this summer.

On the 36-hour journey back to South Africa, Mark Boucher was probably sipping on his favourite Rupert & Rothschild, savouring the latest glorious Proteas Test series comeback under his watch.

What should have been the last chance saloon has turned into a victory parade of sorts for the former wicketkeeper, who is heading to his 16 May independent disciplinary hearing in a far stronger position than before.

Boucher is, as many know, in the dock for alleged racially discriminatory terms directed at former Proteas teammate Paul Adams, not for the performances of the men's national team.

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But striding out of the home Test series with a 2-1 comeback win against India that was hailed as one of the best South African performances on home soil and a come-from-behind 1-1 draw in New Zealand has put him in a favourable position.

The Proteas head coach has evidently secured the buy-in from a relatively inexperienced Proteas team that went through 18 months of chastening defeats before things finally clicked for them under him.

It will be a harder sell for any of his players to possibly say anything that will paint him in a poor light at the hearing, as some have been asked to testify.

The Proteas lost the immediate Test series when Boucher took charge to England at home and to Pakistan in the first post-Covid away tour last year.

The trip to the West Indies in June, where the Dean Elgar-led team won 2-0, turned the boat around, only for the Adams