Ex-Proteas bowler reveals he got 'shocking response' from Amla, ABD on pay disparity issue

Former South Africa bowler Aaron Phangiso revealed that he was "shocked" by the response from AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla over the pay disparity between players and non-playing members in a series against India in 2015. According to iol.co.za, Phangiso, while recording his testimony with the SJN ambassadors, said he was shocked by the stance taken by AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla when he shared his disappointment over the pay gap. Phangiso claimed that the response of the two seasoned Proteas cricketers reportedly showed him how 'people thought only about themselves.'

Phangiso was recording his testimony with the newly constituted committee under the Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) project, which is looking into complaints of racism and discrimination among other things, in order to work towards restoring and reuniting the sport in South Africa. Phangiso shared an incident from South Africa's tour of India in 2015, where non-playing members of the Protea squad received far less salary than those who played every game. Phangiso said players who played every game reportedly earned up to R1,60,000 while non-playing members were reportedly told to split R25,000 between them. 

Phangiso claimed that when he met with Amla and AB to address the subject, they understood his stance and persuaded the South African cricket board to increase the non-playing players' fees. Phangiso went on to say that he was still dissatisfied with the raise in pay since he believed it was less than what they deserved for toiling hard in the sweltering Indian heat.

Phangiso on facing racism in U-19 setup

Phangiso also discussed the bigotry he encountered as an Under-19 player when Black players were paid far less than their white colleagues. Phangiso said he had never seen prejudice before entering the Under-19 system, but he discovered what racism looked like once he joined the Northens franchise, who allegedly paid him and other Black players just R1,200, while their white counterpart received R5,000. Phangiso has played a total of 37 international matches for South Africa between 2012 and 2018. 

(Image Credit: AP/PTI)