Duplantis sera bien présent aux Championnats d'Europe

Resilience has a face in South African cricket, and it wears a smile. Tumi Sekhukhune has known the sharp end of professional sport, the seasons in and out of the squad, the confidence that quietly drained away, and the voice that asked whether the game she loved still had space for her. She answered it the only way she knows how, by fighting, working and refusing to give up.

Speaking to gsport ahead of the recently completed 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in England, the Proteas Women’s fast bowler reflected on a journey that has tested her more than most. The campaign that followed would end in heartbreak, with South Africa beaten by 40 runs by the hosts in the semi-final at The Oval in London on Thursday, 2 July 2026.

Tumi Sekhukhune on a Rise for Proteas Women

Sekhukhune’s own tournament brought a different kind of test: she did not play a single match, through a member of the 15-player squad across all six games. She has been here before, and she has already shown the world what she does next.

Her story began in 2018 with a debut against the West Indies, and gathered early momentum when she was named CSA International Women’s Newcomer of the Year in 2019.

“It’s been a long journey, not the greatest, but there are positives I can think of,” said Sekhukhune. The hardest stretch arrived between 2022 and 2023, when selection became uncertain.

“One of the things that stands out is my perseverance. I’ve been fighting, kept working and not given up.”

Proteas Women Bowler, Tumi Sekhukhune

“It’s not easy to be in and out of the squad,” she admitted. “When you get that opportunity and you don’t feel as confident on the field, you try so many things to impress the coaches, to say that you belong in the squad, and you forget about the most basic things that actually got you there. I forgot that a bit, and the confidence also just went.”

During this period Sekhukhune learned that strength sometimes means asking for help, crediting regular mental check-ins with a psychologist for helping her find the best version of herself again.

“That period for me was very difficult,” she said. “At some points I wanted to throw in the towel and say this might not be for me.”

Instead, she chose reinvention, going back to the drawing board in search of the bowler who first earned selection in 2018.

“I’m quite unique. I’m not one of the fastest bowlers. I don’t have the pace, but I do have the skill.”

“I went to work on my bowling, adding variations, bowling outswing, fixing my action. Even though I didn’t get game time, I started implementing it and the confidence started to come.”

The rewards followed, and in April this year she finished the home T20I series against India as the Proteas’ joint-leading wicket-taker. Behind the resurgence stands head coach Mandla Mashimbyi, whose faith handed her a new role with the new ball.

“It was nerve-wracking to get into this new role of opening the bowling, because I’d never really done that,” she said. “But to have somebody who backs you and says, Tumi, I give you the platform, whether you fail or you don’t fail, just know I’ve got your back. My confidence grew from there.”

The transformation shows, and the smile is genuine. “I’m putting up a smile because I feel more confident and I feel I have people who back me,” she said. “I’m super excited about where the team is heading.”

The squad she spoke from included the returning Shabnim Ismail, who reversed her retirement to feature at the World Cup, and speaking in the build-up, Sekhukhune described the veteran’s presence as a source of learning rather than competition.

“She opens the bowling and I take first change. It’s exciting to have that experience to learn from,” said Sekhukhune. “She’s played so many games all over the world, and I can learn a thing or two with her in the team, especially with my new skill of taking the ball away.”

There is an irony in her omission that will not be lost on South African supporters. Reflecting on the semi-final defeat, Mashimbyi conceded that the Proteas carried too much of the same type of bowler and that opponents could work out what they were trying to do. Variety is precisely what Sekhukhune has spent the past two years building into her game, and her case for a recall could hardly be better made.

For all the miles travelled, Sekhukhune remains rooted in Daveyton, the township that raised her, and her advice to the next generation of girls is simple: keep fighting, keep working and know that the Proteas are within reach.

“I’m somebody who’s there to give hope to everyone in the township, to say they can be whatever they want,” she said.

As for what comes next, the bowler who once considered walking away now speaks about the future with a glint of ambition, in what appeared a nod to the game’s global franchise leagues.

“I don’t jinx myself, but I definitely know that I’m probably going to play international tournaments.”

“You don’t see it as often that bowlers are picked to go to those tournaments, and I think I’ll be part of that, and make history.”

The semi-final at The Oval was not the ending South Africa wanted, and a World Cup spent waiting for a chance was not the tournament Sekhukhune wanted either. But nobody in this Proteas Women’s squad knows better how to answer a setback. She has rebuilt herself once before, and everything in this conversation says she is ready to do it again.

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Main Photo Caption: Proteas Women’s fast bowler Tumi Sekhukhune has turned perseverance into her greatest strength, rebuilding her confidence and her craft to become one of South Africa’s most dependable bowlers. All Photos: Cricket South Africa

Photo 2 Caption: A proud daughter of Daveyton, Sekhukhune walks the streets of home as living proof that township dreams can wear Proteas colours.

Photo 3 Caption: The bowler’s reinvented skill set, built on outswing and variety, makes a compelling case for a Proteas recall when the next national squad is named.

Photo 4 Caption: Wherever the next chapter takes her, Sekhukhune carries the same promise that has defined her career: keep fighting, keep working, never give up.

The post The Fight That Made Tumi Sekhukhune appeared first on gsport4girls.

La Coupe du monde 2026 devait consacrer le triomphe de la FIFA et de son président, Gianni Infantino. Elle risque finalement de rester dans les annales comme celle qui a fragilisé son autorité et accéléré la contestation de sa gouvernance. Pour la première fois dans l’histoire de la Coupe du monde, un président de la FIFA, Gianni Infantino, et un président des États-Unis, Donald Trump, ont été copieusement hués lors de la cérémonie de remise du trophée. Une scène inédite qui traduit le profond malaise suscité par la politisation grandissante de l’instance dirigeante du football mondial. Ces sifflets ne visaient pas seulement deux hommes. Ils exprimaient un rejet plus large d’une manière de gouverner le football, perçue par une partie de l’opinion comme s’éloignant des principes d’indépendance, de neutralité et d’universalité qui ont longtemps constitué l’identité de la FIFA. Elles marquent également des positions tranchantes, comme celles de ces députés anglais qui demandent à leur fédération de quitter l’instance de Zurich, ou encore celle des députés de l’UE, ainsi que des plaintes devant des tribunaux.

Tout au long de la compétition, les controverses se sont accumulées. Les critiques ont porté sur l’organisation
du tournoi, les choix protocolaires, la communication de la FIFA, la proximité affichée entre Gianni Infantino et Donald Trump, ainsi que sur une gouvernance jugée de plus en plus personnalisée. Les réseaux sociaux, tout comme de nombreux éditorialistes, se sont fait l’écho d’un mécontentement rarement observé à une telle échelle lors d’une Coupe du monde. À ces polémiques est venue s’ajouter une image inhabituelle : celle d’un président de la FIFA occupant parfois davantage l’espace médiatique que le football lui- même. De nombreuses voix ont dénoncé une personnalisation excessive du pouvoir, estimant que l’institution servait davantage la communication de son dirigeant que la promotion du jeu.

Depuis plusieurs années déjà, Gianni Infantino est accusé par ses détracteurs d’avoir profondément modifié le fonctionnement de la FIFA en concentrant les décisions stratégiques autour de sa personne. Les contre-pouvoirs internes sont jugés moins influents, tandis que les grandes orientations seraient désormais arrêtées dans un cercle de plus en plus restreint, avec le Marocain Faouzi Lakjaa et l’Égyptien Abou Hani Reda en tant que membres du Conseil de la FIFA, qui tentent de freiner toute contestation en Afrique. Élu en 2016 au lendemain de la chute de Sepp Blatter, Gianni Infantino incarnait alors le renouveau. Il promettait une FIFA plus transparente, plus éthique et plus proche des fédérations nationales. Dix ans plus tard, le contraste est saisissant. Ses détracteurs lui reprochent d’avoir progressivement concentré le pouvoir, renforcé la personnalisation de la gouvernance et installé un mode de fonctionnement où les contre-pouvoirs apparaissent de moins en moins visibles.

Pour nombre d’observateurs, la promesse de rupture avec le passé s’est estompée au profit d’une présidence qui suscite aujourd’hui des critiques comparables, dans un contexte différent, à celles qui avaient marqué la fin de l’ère Blatter. La proximité affichée entre le président de la FIFA et Donald Trump a également alimenté les critiques. Pour de nombreux observateurs, cette relation a brouillé la frontière entre le sport et la politique, pourtant défendue avec vigueur par la FIFA lorsqu’il s’agit de sanctionner fédérations, joueurs ou dirigeants nationaux. Le paradoxe n’a échappé à personne : l’instance mondiale invoque régulièrement le principe de neutralité politique pour justifier certaines sanctions disciplinaires, mais son président est apparu tout au long de cette Coupe du monde dans une proximité assumée avec le Chef de l’État américain, donnant le sentiment d’une FIFA engagée sur un terrain qui n’est pas le sien.

Au-delà des huées, c’est désormais l’avenir à la tête de l’instance de Gianni Infantino qui semble avoir oublié qu’il n’est qu’un simple employé qui est ouvertement évoqué. Dans plusieurs confédérations, des dirigeants commencent à s’interroger sur l’après-Infantino. Sans constituer encore une opposition structurée, les critiques se multiplient et les appels à une alternance deviennent de moins en moins discrets. L’histoire montre que les présidents de la FIFA paraissent souvent inamovibles… jusqu’au moment où le rapport de force bascule. João Havelange avait quitté ses fonctions après vingt-quatre années de règne. Sepp Blatter, longtemps considéré comme indétrônable, avait été contraint de partir sous le poids des scandales qui avaient secoué la FIFA. Aujourd’hui, Gianni Infantino se retrouve à son tour confronté à une contestation qui dépasse largement le seul cadre sportif.

Cette Coupe du monde pourrait ainsi marquer un tournant. Non pas en raison de son vainqueur, mais parce qu’elle a révélé au grand jour une fracture entre la gouvernance de la FIFA et une partie de l’opinion du football mondial. Les grandes compétitions forgent les légendes sportives, mais elles peuvent aussi bouleverser les équilibres institutionnels. Le Mondial 2026 restera peut-être comme celui qui a consacré un champion sur le terrain, tout en ouvrant une période d’incertitude au sommet de la FIFA. Les huées de la finale n’ont sans doute pas, à elles seules, décidé de l’avenir de Gianni Infantino. En revanche, elles ont donné une résonance mondiale à une contestation qui, jusque-là, s’exprimait surtout dans les coulisses du football international. Lorsqu’un président de la FIFA devient lui-même l’objet principal de la contestation populaire, c’est que le débat dépasse désormais sa seule personne : il porte sur la gouvernance et l’avenir même de l’institution. Aussi, l’alibi financier ne tient pas la route. Les sommes investies par les gouvernements pour le football dépassent très largement les peccadilles de la FIFA.
– AHMED BESSOL

L’article FIFA : Le naufrage de Gianni Infantino (Ahmed Bessol) est apparu en premier sur Foot Afrique.

Former Tanzania national team head coach Adel Amrouche has linked new Kaizer Chiefs signing Adolf Mtasingwa Bitegeko to French star Paul Pogba.

Bitegeko is yet to play for Amakhosi but his former coach believes the Soweto giants have signed a ‘baller’. The former Azam midfielder is Chiefs’ third signing of the season after Renaldo Leaner and Thabo Moloisane.

“He has good height, plays with simplicity and doesn’t complicate his life on the pitch,” Amrouche said as per GOAL.

“He can be even better if he finds an environment where he’s trusted and managed well.

“He’s like Pogba. Adolf has a nice passing range.”

Bitegeko’s former Azam FC teammate Prince Dube also shared his thoughts on what Kaizer Chiefs can expect from their new midfielder.

“He’s a typical defensive midfielder who sits in front of the defence and protects the back four well.

“I think he’ll fit in very well at Kaizer Chiefs.

“He needs to adjust because South African football is quicker, but his passing is very good,” Dube added.

Can the new Kaizer Chiefs midfielder deliver?

The 27-year-old midfielder has played for KR Reykjavik, Keflavik, and Volsungur IF, and also had brief spells in Norway and Finland.

He joined Azam in 2024 and immediately became one of the most sought after midfielder in Tanzania. At Amakhosi, he will have to fight Sibongiseni Mthwethwa and Siphesihle Ndlove for the number six position.

He might get his first run when Kaizer Chiefs play Scotland FC in the Toyota Cup this weekend.

Do you expect new Chiefs midfielder to dominate the midfield?

NAIROBI, Kenya, July 22, 2026 – Under the summer sun of southern France, 18-year-old Marion Serenge moves with a quiet, unshakeable confidence that belies her youth.

Out on the turf in Miramas, where the Harambee Starlets are putting the final touches on their preparations for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), the teenage prodigy is proving that age is just a number when talent and determination take center stage.

Having risen rapidly through Kenya’s youth setups, Serenge now finds herself in the middle of senior international football.

Yet, amidst the intensity of head coach Beldine Odemba’s drills in Miramas, the St Noa forward looks completely in her element.

Known for her rare ability to strike cleanly with both feet, Serenge’s sharpness in front of goal has provided a spark in camp as Kenya prepares to face continental royalty in Group A, starting against hosts Morocco on July 26 (Sunday) in Rabat.

Despite being one of the youngest members of the travelling party, Serenge is not just along for the ride.

She shares the team’s collective ambition of making history on the North African coast.

“We plan to reach the semis and given the way we have prepared, we have that belief that we will get there,” Serenge noted during training in Miramas.

A semi-final berth in Morocco is more than just a continental statement; it carries the ultimate prize, automatic qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

As the Starlets prepare to cross the Mediterranean into Morocco on July 23, Serenge’s energy in training embodies the fearlessness of a new generation ready to write a new chapter for Kenyan football on the big stage.