JP Duminy’s 19-year cricketing career shines bright. From scoring a golden duck in his first ever club game, he went on to make 326 appearances for the Proteas and played nine seasons in the IPL. He speaks to MatieMedia’s Cody Hansen about his early life, playing career, family, mental health and what he is up to these days.
JP Duminy celebrates scoring a century during a test match for the Proteas. Duminy scored six test centuries during his international career, with three of those coming against Australia. PHOTO: Facebook/Cricket South Africa
At the age of 8, Jean-Paul (JP) Duminy plays his first game for Strandfontein Cricket Club. He is left devastated after going out for a golden duck.
“The beauty of that experience was, I remember walking off the field, and I thought – well, I guess I can only get better from here. I can’t get any worse,” says Duminy.
It’s been three years since he called time on a 19-year playing career, which saw him represent the Proteas on 326 occasions.
Duminy sits on a couch in a hotel room in Johannesburg, ready to take a Zoom call with MatieMedia. It’s Sunday night and he has ordered room service for dinner. He is going to be away from his family for two weeks for work.
The Beginning
Duminy’s cricketing journey began in the streets of Strandfontein, playing cricket with his friends using a black dustbin as the wickets – following the intricate rules of a game of street cricket.
He recalls sleeping over at a friend’s house and waking up in the early hours of the morning to watch the Proteas play in Australia or New Zealand. Afterwards trying to imitate the players’ styles of batting and bowling in the driveway.
He was a big fan of Herschelle Gibbs and Jacques Kallis, who years later he would call his teammates.
Duminy was billed as a rising star from a young age, making his debut for Western Province in 2001 at the age of 17. He signed his first professional contract two years later.
“I was a lazy bugger, man,” says Duminy. “Honestly, as a young boy, I sort of relied a lot on my talent. And it got me to play for the national team. But to sustain a career at the national team, I needed a bit of a shift. And yeah, I got a rude awakening when I made my debut in 2004.”
Duminy made his senior debut for South Africa at the age of 20, during the first of a five-match one-day international (ODI) series in Sri Lanka.
Facing an inspired Sri Lankan side – South Africa lost the series 5-0, with Duminy only managing 29 runs in the series.
“I realised that I was way behind the mark in terms of standards, fitness levels, mental capabilities, understanding how the game works. Yoh… I was way behind.”
Duminy was dropped immediately after the series. He was “borderline wanting to give up the game” because things didn’t go according to plan.
But he had a good support structure and received encouragement from his family and coaches.
“I needed some stern words spoken by those closest to me that I needed to make a shift. You know, in terms of my work ethic, how I approach the game and understanding that there are going to be sacrifices. You can’t just be going out and partying like your friends do. There’s sacrifices that have to be made,” says Duminy.
He joined the National Cricket Academy in Johannesburg in 2005, spending a few months there rekindling his love for the game.
“I really needed to reassess and re-evaluate my goals, or what I wanted to achieve.” It wasn’t just about making the national team, but keeping himself there.
“Fortunately, I got another opportunity in late 2006. And that’s where it sort of catapulted up again.”
JP Duminy holds the International Cricket Council’s (ICC’s) Test Mase after South Africa became the number one ranked test cricket team in the world after defeating England in 2012. PHOTO: Twitter/@jpduminy21
Monumental Rise
Duminy got his chance for the Proteas again in limited overs towards the end of 2006. This time he made it stick.
But it was South Africa’s tour of Australia during the 2008/09 season where Duminy introduced himself to the world.
He had been travelling with the Proteas test team for “about a year and a half”, spending most of that time as a substitute.
On 17 December 2008, Duminy made his test debut for the Proteas in Perth, replacing Ashwell Prince, who had broken his thumb in the nets the day before.
“I only truly found out that I was playing an hour before the start of play. So, I didn’t really sleep too well, to be honest,” says Duminy. Prince was “very supportive and encouraging”, says Duminy. “That certainly helped. Very much all of them were.”
He made 50 not out in the second innings, hitting the winning runs in a historic victory for South Africa as they scored 414 for 4 in the fourth innings to beat Australia on home soil. In the process recording the second-highest test run chase of all time.
During the first innings of the second test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, he produced a performance for the ages.
Duminy walked to the crease at number six, with South Africa in trouble at 126 for 4, and still a daunting 268 runs behind Australia’s first innings total.
The score soon became 141 for 6, after AB de Villiers and Mark Boucher were dismissed. It was a dire situation, but Duminy hung in there, ending the day 34 not out with South Africa 198 for 7.
The next day, in the late afternoon, after spending a mammoth seven hours and 28 minutes at the crease, Duminy was caught for 166. The score read 459 all out, and the entire stadium was on their feet.
JP Duminy discussing his fondest memory of South Africa’s tour of Australia during the 2008/09 season. VIDEO: Cody Hansen
An inspired South African team went on to win the test match, recording their first ever test series victory in Australia. It was the first time Australia had lost a home test series in 16 years.
After that tour, Duminy became known on a world-stage, and was snapped up by the Mumbai Indians for the 2009 IPL season, which he describes as a “breath-taking experience”.
Duminy recalls only joining the Mumbai team on the way to their first game because he had just arrived back from SA’s tour of Australia.
“I literally walked into the bus on the way to the ground. And that was the first time I met them [the team]. So I walk in – Sachin Tendulkar’s on my left, Zaheer Khan on my right, Harbhajan Singh, Sanath Jayasuriya. And I’m like, okay – I’m just going to walk straight to the back of the bus.”
When he walked out to bat in their first game, Tendulkar was at the crease.
“So yeah, howzit man? Glove punch, and here we go.”
Ebbs and Flows
Duminy became a mainstay in the South African team in all three formats of the game after that famous tour Down Under.
But his glamorous career was not without its lows.
He says that he probably recognised he was struggling with mental health in the late 2000s.
“Naturally, what happens from a cricketing perspective is that you play a game, and you celebrate it, right? But celebrating it is one thing, but like, getting legless is another,” says Duminy. “The reality was, that was a coping mechanism of the pressures that you felt. You know, leading into a game, on the day of the game, everything that goes with it, and it’s almost like you needed this release. But the reality was – that release was not fulfilling,” says Duminy.
Duminy describes the experience as putting a band-aid over it. “You think that it’s healed, but it’s not really. That was my experience for a long time.”
He recalls having anxious moments and panic attacks.
“I ended up seeing sports psychologists. I saw life coaches – I still actually see one to be honest – for different reasons. But it’s truly been fulfilling for me to be able to speak about and share things to find solutions.”
Duminy is a devout Christian, who found his religion again during a tour of Sri Lanka in 2013. He describes this as a turning point in his life.
“The reason I say that is because my identity shifted into something greater than just my performance. Even though, you know, you still struggle from time to time – and I still do – but there’s a greater sense of calmness and peace in knowing that I have a Saviour.”
Life at home
Duminy met his wife, Sue, at a cricketing function in 2008. It’s an encounter they both describe as ‘love at first sight’.
“I get shy to say this actually… She was one of the models that was modelling the new gear. It was the launch of the new sponsor for the national team and she was one of the models,” says Duminy. She caught his eye, and “that was the end of story”.
The couple married in 2011 and have two daughters together, Isabella (6) and Alexa-Rose (3).
Duminy describes being somewhat of a full-time dad these days as “fantastic”. He is grateful for the moments he gets to spend with his family, particularly his kids.
A common theme with most sporting dads is a potential lack of quality time spent with family, due to travelling a lot of the time, says Duminy. “So, you always need to cherish those moments where you have the time with them.”
While speaking about the importance of family, Duminy reflects on an experience he had recently.
“I played a club game, randomly. I haven’t played in three years, and I got asked to play and I played. And I got a bit of runs. But, you know, I got out. I thought the umpire gave me a bit of a shocker, and I was upset. You know, I was p’d off.”
Duminy’s family was at the game and his eldest daughter ran over as he was walking towards the clubhouse.
“And she just says: ‘Papa, are you finished?’ And that was like a reminder for me that there’s just no filter, you know. They are who they are, no matter what you do. And it was a great leveller of calming me down,” he says.
He arrived at his tog bag where his youngest daughter was waiting, wanting to be picked up.
“And I’m like, jeepers, I just got out and I’m still fuming, you know. But it was a great experience.”
JP Duminy with his wife, Sue, and two daughters – Isabella (left) and Alexa-Rose (right). PHOTO: Facebook/Jean-Paul Duminy
Hanging up the gloves
Duminy retired from all forms of international cricket after the ICC Cricket World Cup in July 2019, calling time on a playing career that spanned over 19 years.
He describes the transition to retirement as an “interesting one”.
During his playing career, he felt that there was very much a strong purpose to what he was doing. He was part of organisations with a great history and legacy. “So, something greater than just me playing the game of cricket.”
“When I retired, as much as I’d prepared for it, I felt a little bit shell shocked in a way where I was like – what’s next?” says Duminy. “And even though I had had things lined up, I still felt a little bit unsure. So, it took me a couple of weeks to get used to it, and then sort of find a greater purpose in it, which eventually, fortunately, I found.”
JP Duminy discussing how the experiences of his cricketing career prepared him for retirement. AUDIO: Cody Hansen
Duminy is currently the batting coach of the Johannesburg-based Imperial Lions cricket team, while also serving as a batting consultant for the Proteas during the T20 World Cup last year.
He was recently named a Laureus ambassador – an honour in the sporting world.
One of his goals for the future includes running a marathon this year.
“From a career perspective, I mentioned earlier I just want to be aligned with where God is leading me. I think there’s also certainly a desire and a hunger for coaching.”
Planting the seed
A big theme for Duminy is giving back, and using his platform to help others.
He does a lot of work through his foundation, JP21, which was founded in 2015.
“The JP21 foundation is an organisation that uses sport to impact youth at risk – kids from townships and on the Cape Flats,” says Jamaine Cloete, project manager of the JP21 Foundation, and also Duminy’s best friend and manager.
Mitchell’s Plain and Strandfontein were identified as the beneficiary base, as these are the areas where Duminy grew up.
“We use cricket to create opportunities, to inspire young boys and girls to dream and to think of more than what their circumstances are,” says Cloete.
“I get a lot of credit for it, naturally, because it’s affiliated to me. But, you know, the team that I’ve got deserves all the credit,” says Duminy.
JP Duminy tests out a new cricket pitch at Ridgeville Primary School in Mitchell’s Plain. The pitch was installed through the JP21 Foundation. SOURCE: Twitter/@JP21Foundation
In the words of others
Cloete, who has known Duminy since grade eight, describes him as an “incredibly passionate” man.
“He is definitely purpose-led. He’s got kind of a heart of gold, is always giving of his time, he’s always there for everybody else and he’s deeply connected with purpose and faith,” says Cloete.
Duminy “epitomizes exactly what it means to be South African. Proudly South African,” says Ray Swartz, secretary of the Strandfontein Cricket Club.
“He has done so much in terms of raising the awareness and raising the profile of both Strandfontein and obviously other areas that are very disadvantaged as well. So, I think that is very synonymous with what JP stands for,” says Swartz.
Behind closed doors
South Africa’s highest run scorer in T20 international cricket. 326 international games. 9 154 runs. 132 wickets. Nine seasons in the IPL, with one as captain of the Delhi Daredevils. Six test centuries, including three against Australia.
The numbers speak for themselves.
Yet, behind the scenes there is a humble, down-to-earth family man. An open book, with a strong sense of purpose and a burning desire to use his platform to help others.
JP Duminy may be known for his cricketing days. But the reality is that there is so much more than face value.