“It was crazy. We’d have 2 000 people queuing outside our bus wanting autographs. We landed in the airport at Heathrow to 1 000 people welcoming us.”
“It was crazy. We’d have 2 000 people queuing outside our bus wanting autographs. We landed in the airport at Heathrow to 1 000 people welcoming us.”
Fame wasn’t something James Price was used to. But the St Andrew's College Old boy carries himself with the distinguished grace one expects from an Eastern Province (EP) cricketer.
”It’s funny how in England, because cricket is so big over there, the attention you get is overwhelming, but here (South Africa) the hype isn’t as big. You get a mention in the paper and people who follow cricket know you but that’s it,” Price said.
A native of Port Elizabeth, Price was picked to be part of the SA 19 team that toured England in 2011. He played for Dulwich for six months.
“A cricket bat and ball were the first things in my hand when I was growing up,” Price said.
He enjoyed a successful sporting career at St Andrew's, competing in track and on the first teams for both hockey and rugby.
“Cricket was always number one,” he is quick to say. At the age of 11, Price was invited to the U12 Albany trials.
“From then on you’re in the system," he said.
"The organisation kept an eye on me and invited me back to trials every year.”
An injury requiring reconstructive surgery in 2009 threatened Price’s career, but after six weeks of rigorous rehab and recuperation, the cricketer was back on the pitch.
“It wasn’t forced on me. I was just always interested in sport, in general. I happened to focus on cricket because I was good at it,” Price said.
The academy has nurtured Price’s talent and given him the skills to be a well-rounded athlete.
“When I first started I just wanted to smash everything out of the park because I was a little bit arrogant,” Price said.
But the EP academy not only taught him to hone his skill but offered courses such as Toastmasters and guidance in giving speeches and how to conduct yourself in interviews that have refined his persona on and off the pitch.
The competitive cricketer demands his best whenever he is on the pitch; it’s a matter of improving his craft from one game to the next.
“Once people start figuring you out you have to start making changes.
I do think I’m maturing a lot.
I’ve noticed my own improvement between this season and last season,” he said. “I hate losing. So whatever I do I try to win.”
