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‘Who the hell showed up?’ South African legends called out over shocking hypocrisy after Women’s World Cup snub
Debate ignited in South Africa over absence of cricket legends at World Cup final
India lifted the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 at a packed DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. While the hosts celebrated their win and the fans were seen going ecstatic with the win, the scene was quite different at the other end. One of the strongest reactions to the night’s result came from Cape Town.
“Who the hell showed up from South Africa?”
South African actress, writer, and self-confessed cricket nerd, Thanja Vuur, has ignited a debate back home after calling her own country’s legends and power-brokers for their virtual no-show at the final. In an Instagram reel posted from her handle @cape_town_cricket_queen, Vuur contrasted India’s wall-to-wall support with South Africa’s silence from the stands.
Praising the hosts first, she told Indian fans, “India, you win this World Cup. Your congratulations is coming. Just give me a few minutes because first I’m gonna tell you why. The reason is you.”
She then zeroed in on the presence of Indian greats at the DY Patil: Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma, VVS Laxman, Sunil Gavaskar, and others were all spotted in the stands, alongside ICC and franchise heavyweights.
That, Vuur argued, is where the difference lay. Turning the lens on her own country, she unleashed the line that has since gone viral in India and South Africa, “Who the hell showed up from South Africa? These ex-cricket players that you love from South Africa, the men.... where are they? Oh, this event was not high-profile enough for them.”
Also Read: Women's ODI World Cup 2025 Team of the Tournament: 3 Indian players make the cut, no Harmanpreet Kaur
She didn’t stop at former players. Vuur went on to question the complete absence of South Africa’s political and administrative elite from the biggest night in the team’s history, saying she was “disappointed that not even the Sports Minister” was seen at the final.
“The girls worked so hard. They did so well. But what does it feel like when none of these people show up? Did they just think we were gonna lose? Is that the message they’re sending?” she asked, framing the defeat as much as an emotional abandonment as a sporting loss.
Vuur’s video then circles back to India, crediting the title not just to Harmanpreet Kaur’s team but to the people in the stands and on their screens at home. “You guys live and breathe this sport... It is breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You are the winners of this World Cup. And you know what? You deserve it,” she said, arguing that the belief and noise from the terraces played a tangible role in India’s first women’s ODI world title.
The reel has opened up an uncomfortable conversation in South Africa about how seriously the country takes its women’s cricketers, and why, on the biggest night of their careers, too many of the game’s supposed torchbearers chose to stay away.
