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UCBSA honour Donald, Pollock among others
By Fakir Hassen

Jan 19, 2001, 17:10 Hrs (IST)

Johannesburg: Six South African cricketers and two officials have been honoured for their achievements by the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA) and sponsors.

Allan Donald, Gary Kirsten, Darryl Cullinan, Jonty Rhodes, Mark Boucher, current captain Shaun Pollock, team manager Goolam Rajah and physiotherapist Craig Smith were awarded at a function here on Thursday evening.

Donald got the Gold Award for his achievement in taking his 300th Test wicket. Pollock and Boucher received Silver Awards - Pollock for his leadership and wicket-keeper Boucher for taking 100 scalps in Test cricket.

Batsmen Kirsten, Cullinan and Rhodes all got Bronze Awards for having played in more than 50 Tests for South Africa.

Kirsten has scored 4,556 runs, the most by any South African player. He also holds the record of 58 caps together with former captain Hansie Cronje, who has now been banned for life by the UCBSA after his admission to being involved in match-fixing.

"It's fantastic," Kirsten said after receiving the award. "Obviously it's an honor and privilege to play for South Africa. I've played for the last seven years and really enjoyed it. Hopefully there's a bit more time left," he added.

Cullinan, who holds the second highest record of 4,047 runs and shares the highest score in a single Test with Kirsten of 275 runs, commended the sponsors of South African cricket for showing they are "passionate" about the sport and appreciated the efforts of the cricketers through this recognition.

India Abroad News Service