Always a ‘cricket man’, Marais Erasmus will be remembered as one of the best

Not everyone who understands cricket can become an umpire. It requires a wide range of skills that need to be honed and developed.

As key individuals on the field of play, umpires are always under pressure to do their jobs well, and Marais Erasmus says it’s not as easy as it looks.

“It takes a lot of work and effort. You can’t just make a direct transition from playing the game to being an umpire,” Erasmus said this week, after announcing his retirement from the international game.

Erasmus did play cricket, and he was good at it. But the cricket world gained far more from him after he put down his bat.

He was always going to end up entrenched in the game, though Erasmus might not have known in his youth which paths he would ultimately follow.

Playing career

Born in George, he learned to keep score as a schoolboy growing up in Cape Town, and he went on to play as an all-rounder for Boland between 1988 and 1997.

In 53 first-class matches, he scored one century and seven half-centuries with the bat, and he took seven five-wicket hauls with the ball. He also played 54 limited overs games.

While competing as an amateur elite player, however, Erasmus had already turned to officiating while coaching kids on the sidelines of his full-time teaching career.

After calling it quits as a player at the age of 33, he considered doing more coaching but ultimately decided to focus on his umpiring career, and he began standing in first-class games in 2002.

Just four years later, he umpired his first international match, a T20I between SA and Australia at the Wanderers in February 2006, and by 2008 he had stopped teaching and was umpiring full time.

Rewarded for his consistency in 2010, after rocketing through the global ranks with support from Cricket South Africa, Erasmus joined the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires who are appointed by the International Cricket Council to oversee Test and ODI matches around the world.

He went on to stand in 82 Tests, 124 ODIs and 61 T20Is during an impressive career which included four successive men’s ODI World Cups and 11 men’s and women’s World Cups in the T20 format.

Erasmus also received the David Shepherd Trophy in 2016, 2017 and 2021 for ICC Umpire of the Year, and he remains the only South African to have been awarded the accolade.

Final Test

After announcing his international retirement, Erasmus was standing in his final Test this week, in the second match between New Zealand and Australia in Christchurch which started on Friday.

Speaking from his hotel room after the first day’s play, he admitted he would miss being on field, though he was eager to spend more time at home after travelling the world throughout his lengthy career.

“I am very fortunate to have continued my association with the game after my time as a cricketer in South Africa and have enjoyed every moment,” Erasmus said.

“While I will miss being on the ICC Elite Panel and the challenges that come with it, I feel it is time for me to step away and look to contribute to the game in some other way.”

Mentoring role

When he returns home to Cape Town next week, 60-year-old Erasmus already has some ideas of how he will stay involved in cricket, taking on more of a mentorship and consulting role.

“We still need to figure things out with CSA, but they are keen to use me in some capacity, and I’ll be working with some younger umpires in September and October,” he said.

“I don’t see myself umpiring much longer (at domestic level) but I might still stay involved as a referee or by doing some umpire coaching.”

Whatever he goes on to do, Erasmus says cricket will always be in his blood, and he will remain attached to the game in one way or another.

“I don’t want to walk away from cricket completely. Even if I’m not involved directly, I won’t stop watching the game,” he said.

“I’ve retired as an international umpire, but I can’t see myself ever retiring from being a cricket man.”