Resilience has a face in South African cricket, and it wears a smile. Tumi Sekhukhune has known the sharp end of professional sport, the seasons in and out of the squad, the confidence that quietly drained away, and the voice that asked whether the game she loved still had space for her. She answered it the only way she knows how, by fighting, working and refusing to give up.
Speaking to gsport ahead of the recently completed 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in England, the Proteas Women’s fast bowler reflected on a journey that has tested her more than most. The campaign that followed would end in heartbreak, with South Africa beaten by 40 runs by the hosts in the semi-final at The Oval in London on Thursday, 2 July 2026.
Sekhukhune’s own tournament brought a different kind of test: she did not play a single match, through a member of the 15-player squad across all six games. She has been here before, and she has already shown the world what she does next.
Her story began in 2018 with a debut against the West Indies, and gathered early momentum when she was named CSA International Women’s Newcomer of the Year in 2019.
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“It’s been a long journey, not the greatest, but there are positives I can think of,” said Sekhukhune. The hardest stretch arrived between 2022 and 2023, when selection became uncertain.
“One of the things that stands out is my perseverance. I’ve been fighting, kept working and not given up.”
Proteas Women Bowler, Tumi Sekhukhune
“It’s not easy to be in and out of the squad,” she admitted. “When you get that opportunity and you don’t feel as confident on the field, you try so many things to impress the coaches, to say that you belong in the squad, and you forget about the most basic things that actually got you there. I forgot that a bit, and the confidence also just went.”
During this period Sekhukhune learned that strength sometimes means asking for help, crediting regular mental check-ins with a psychologist for helping her find the best version of herself again.
“That period for me was very difficult,” she said. “At some points I wanted to throw in the towel and say this might not be for me.”
Instead, she chose reinvention, going back to the drawing board in search of the bowler who first earned selection in 2018.
“I’m quite unique. I’m not one of the fastest bowlers. I don’t have the pace, but I do have the skill.”
“I went to work on my bowling, adding variations, bowling outswing, fixing my action. Even though I didn’t get game time, I started implementing it and the confidence started to come.”
The rewards followed, and in April this year she finished the home T20I series against India as the Proteas’ joint-leading wicket-taker. Behind the resurgence stands head coach Mandla Mashimbyi, whose faith handed her a new role with the new ball.
“It was nerve-wracking to get into this new role of opening the bowling, because I’d never really done that,” she said. “But to have somebody who backs you and says, Tumi, I give you the platform, whether you fail or you don’t fail, just know I’ve got your back. My confidence grew from there.”
The transformation shows, and the smile is genuine. “I’m putting up a smile because I feel more confident and I feel I have people who back me,” she said. “I’m super excited about where the team is heading.”
The squad she spoke from included the returning Shabnim Ismail, who reversed her retirement to feature at the World Cup, and speaking in the build-up, Sekhukhune described the veteran’s presence as a source of learning rather than competition.
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“She opens the bowling and I take first change. It’s exciting to have that experience to learn from,” said Sekhukhune. “She’s played so many games all over the world, and I can learn a thing or two with her in the team, especially with my new skill of taking the ball away.”
There is an irony in her omission that will not be lost on South African supporters. Reflecting on the semi-final defeat, Mashimbyi conceded that the Proteas carried too much of the same type of bowler and that opponents could work out what they were trying to do. Variety is precisely what Sekhukhune has spent the past two years building into her game, and her case for a recall could hardly be better made.
For all the miles travelled, Sekhukhune remains rooted in Daveyton, the township that raised her, and her advice to the next generation of girls is simple: keep fighting, keep working and know that the Proteas are within reach.
“I’m somebody who’s there to give hope to everyone in the township, to say they can be whatever they want,” she said.
As for what comes next, the bowler who once considered walking away now speaks about the future with a glint of ambition, in what appeared a nod to the game’s global franchise leagues.
“I don’t jinx myself, but I definitely know that I’m probably going to play international tournaments.”
“You don’t see it as often that bowlers are picked to go to those tournaments, and I think I’ll be part of that, and make history.”
The semi-final at The Oval was not the ending South Africa wanted, and a World Cup spent waiting for a chance was not the tournament Sekhukhune wanted either. But nobody in this Proteas Women’s squad knows better how to answer a setback. She has rebuilt herself once before, and everything in this conversation says she is ready to do it again.
Main Photo Caption: Proteas Women’s fast bowler Tumi Sekhukhune has turned perseverance into her greatest strength, rebuilding her confidence and her craft to become one of South Africa’s most dependable bowlers. All Photos: Cricket South Africa
Photo 2 Caption: A proud daughter of Daveyton, Sekhukhune walks the streets of home as living proof that township dreams can wear Proteas colours.
Photo 3 Caption: The bowler’s reinvented skill set, built on outswing and variety, makes a compelling case for a Proteas recall when the next national squad is named.
Photo 4 Caption: Wherever the next chapter takes her, Sekhukhune carries the same promise that has defined her career: keep fighting, keep working, never give up.
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