In this episode Dan Weston walks me through The Hundred and T20 cricket using numbers. Numbers have always been Dan's thing, he has an accounting degree and then from there became a professional gambler playing online poker and slots. Now he is using his numbers to make sense of cricket: players, matches and teams. He is a data analyst for Birmingham Phoenix and Leicestershire CCC. He also provides recruitment data and strategy services for teams. He has done well for himself for someone who only played village cricket. - To support this podcast, please visit our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/CSChiwanza If you like this podcast, you may enjoy other things I create, check them all out at: https://linktr.ee/CSChiwanza You can find Dan Weston on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/SAAdvantage

Glenn Pocknall is one of those rare ones. It is not often that an individual without a substantial history in the sport gets to go very far. There is a distrust for "outsiders", and by virtue of not having played cricket at any professional level, Glenn is an outsider of sorts. The Wellington Firebirds coach shares the story of his journey in this conversation, where he also shares some of his out of the box methods at training. To support the podcast please go to our Patreon page. https://www.patreon.com/CSChiwanza If you like this podcast, you may enjoy other things I create, check them all out at https://linktr.ee/CSChiwanza

The boy from Duduza who had lunch at Lord's, that is the easiest way to describe Mangaliso Mosehle's journey. In this episode Mangi shares his highs and lows, being selected for the Proteas and losing his franchise contract the very next year. He shares the lessons that he learnt from that experience and what his nomadic wicketkeeping career has taught him - it is easier to count the franchises he hasn't played for than the ones he played for, and he has won a few titles along the way. To support the podcast please go to our Patreon page. https://www.patreon.com/CSChiwanza If you like this podcast, you may enjoy other things I create, check them all out at https://linktr.ee/CSChiwanza

Tabraiz Shamsi is a rare kind of cricketer, you aren't going to see a lot of chinaman bowlers, let alone one from South Africa who does a bit of magic to entertain the crowd. Shamsi is a showman to the hilt, and he does enjoy a good scrap in the middle, he does not know how to back down from a fight. He keeps coming back and trying to find ways to get the upper hand. In this episode of Pavilion Conversations, we chat about his journey as a cricketer, and what makes him the kind of player he is. To support the podcast please go to our Patreon page. https://www.patreon.com/CSChiwanza If you like this podcast, you may enjoy other things I create, check them all out at https://linktr.ee/CSChiwanza

SJ, as most of his mates call him, has really come a long way both as a cricketer and as an individual. He is not yet a finished product, but he has arrived at a place where he is happy with the individual that he has become - and the one that he is becoming. Together we trace the path of his career in this great chat. 

The lifeblood of any sports code is the grassroots, the local clubs and the semi-pros. Without them there is no hope for growth and development. In this short chat, Dev Govindjee walks me through the Port Elizabeth Sports Legends Trust. The PESTL was formed to recognize and celebrate some of Port Elizabeth's sporting heroes, the men and women who participated in sports during a very difficult era for South African sports. Many of them went uncelebrated and live with little recognition to the role they played in laying the foundations of sports in their communities.

Adi Birrel started coaching in a very different era, in the 1980s. He was 24 and things were very different back then. So, it's safe to say he has seen it all. From coaching kids without equipment and proper facilities in the townships to taking Ireland to the 2007 World Cup and then now at Hampshire County Cricket Club, Birrel has coached at every level.  

Anyone with the guts to title their book "The Fast Bowler's Bible" must know what they are talking about, right? If that person's name is Ian Pont, then yes, they are not all talk and no substance. Look, anyone who gets a glowing mention in Shoaib Akhtar's book as a coach who had an impact on his bowling has to be worth their weight in gold. And it is not just Shoaib whom Pont has coached with great results, add Dale Steyn to that list. Ponty runs one of the most respected coaching schools when it comes to fast bowling.

From being a replacement player to one of the most respected coaches in South African, that is the story of Michael Smith. Smith coached at age-group level cricket with successful spells with Maritzburg and Grey Colleges to professional cricket with KZN Inland and Islamabad United in the Pakistan Super League.

In 2018 Heinrich Malan lost the opportunity to succeed Mike Hesson as the new coach of the Black Caps. It is a setback that he took in stride, never been one to brood about missed opportunities. And now three years later he is back in the Black Caps set up, this time as an assistant coach, called in by the man who beat him to the top job, Gary Stead. Malan, has won a significant number of titles in New Zealand with Central Districts Stags and with his current side Auckland Aces. The Pretoria-born coach has been coaching for as long as he can remember.