Khanyisa Chawane’s new rodeo went off to a smooth start. Chawane led the Spar Proteas to a 3-0 whitewash series over Malawi in the Spar Women’s Netball Challenge at the Ellis Park Arena.
Although this was her first test as the senior women’s captain, this is not her first leadership role. She captained the Baby Proteas to the Netball World Youth Cup in Botswana where South Africa finished sixth. She also used to be the Limpopo Under-16 provincial captain.
She will lead South Africa to this year’s Africa Cup set for in the west coast city of Swakopmund in Namibia in December.
The midcourt player appreciates the difference in all the levels of captaincy she has ever held. She admits that being the skipper of the senior national team comes with a bit more weight.
“It is definitely different, as a junior, it’s more fun. It’s just you and your friends, whatever you do, everyone follows. But here you need to be more responsible, it’s the face of netball. It is the face of South Africa, so you need to think before you do anything and be mindful of the image of the badge,” says Chawane.
The Cardiff Dragons player reckons that leading seniors is slightly better as they have previous experience as leaders in their former teams.
“The people that I am leading now, I have led before. But my role in the team has changed from being just a player to being a leader. Being a player is just chilled, it was senior players that did almost everything. Now I am the one that does something and everyone follows.
"But the team is a group of leaders, everyone that is in the team has led a certain team. I am lucky not to watch over people but lead people that are responsible, lead people who are already examples. It is a good position to be in and I am excited about that,” she explains.
The Proteas started their international season with impressive performances which saw them winning by large margins. They won the first match by 37 goals, they went on to secure the second with 31 goals before wrapping up the series by a whooping 45-goal margin, the largest of the series.
Chawane is pleased with how the team started the season but understands that the team has a lot to work on, especially with the upcoming competitions which include the test series in Jamaica and the All Nations Cup in England early in 2025.
“I am happy with how we went by in the series and how we finished. I am really impressed with the group because, with every combination the coach decided to put on, we played well and supported one another.
"I am proud of each person that stepped on that court, whatever opportunity that was put out there for any player, they really stepped up and did their job. It also makes my job easier as well, leading a team like this is easier. We still have a lot of work to do but I’m happy with the start,” she says.
Chawane says she hopes during her reign she will get to bring some change to the sport. Apart from the Africa Cup, medals have been eluding the senior women’s team. The closest the Proteas have been to a medal in recent years was during the 2019 Netball World Cup in Liverpool, where South Africa lost the bronze medal narrowly to England.
The centre court player hopes to have gotten a few medals and scalps of the top four teams by the time her reign comes to an end.
“When I look at my reign as captain, it is a journey to doing things that have not been done before. I have been in a position where, for example, we speak about medals at the Commonwealth Games or the World Cup.
"We speak about winning against the big teams and we never got across that line. I have confidence in our coaches and the group we have right now that we will be able to achieve those things. Yes, you might be a great leader but the track record really matters.
"It is looking at the results and making sure that at the end of the day, the World Cup or whatever, we have gotten that medal. We have done something that has not been done before,” she says.