BY MOYAHABO MABEBA
Lucas “Kilimanjaro” Lamola and his teammates in the South African U/23 squad will have plenty to prove when they jet off to Parana, Argentina for the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) World Cup. The tournament starts from 15-23 April.
Lamola will be at Nafaldo Cargnel Stadium in the capital city of Entre Rios. Solidly entrenched as his country’s pitcher-in-chief and the one with unmatched international experience among his peers.
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The 21-year-old left-handed paceman is from Jupitar village, Ga-Mashashane in Limpopo. He is the undisputed leader of his country’s pitching attack from the mound.
The rise and rise of Lamola has been one of the unqualified success stories of South African softball in recent times, a sporting feat worthy of making a song and dance about.
Together with the influential Tyler Croft, they were drafted in the 15-member SA Team by head coach, Samson Rakgoale.
Besides their presence in the U\23 squad, the duo of Lamola and Croft are still members of the SA senior team coached by Lemo Raphasha that finished 11th in the last Senior Men’s World Cup played in Auckland, New Zealand.
THE RISE OF LUCAS LAMOLA
Lamola burst on the international scene as a teenage prodigy in 2018 during the WBSC World Championships in Canada.
But 2022 was indeed the year in which he cemented his berth in the national game. Featuring in the African Qualifiers with the senior men’s team, the U\23 African Qualifiers and WBSC World Series with the senior team in New Zealand.
So much has been spoken, written and speculated about the ace paceman’s (Lamola) pitching action that further analysis would be futile.
Suffice to say that Lamola’“full flight” pitching style has been given the thumbs-up by the game’s authorities. However, there is a great deal of conjecture among some umpires who dispute that Lamola’s action is in actual fact an “illegal pitch”. But their judgments seem to have no effect.
And thank heavens for that. Because watching him weave his magic has been one of the treats of the modern game. His prodigious appetite for dismissing batsmen from the batter’s box makes him an even more intimidating customer.
Lamola’s vast international experience has toughened him up. This could add more impetus to the team chock-full of newcomers to the international scene.
KILIMANJARO UPBEAT ABOUT SOFTBALL WORLD CUP
“I was thrown into the deep end as a novice but now I have gained a lot of experience. As we go to this upcoming World Cup, I am very much upbeat that I will personally enjoy this tournament. Give my coach and our country the best results as humanly as possible” said a confident Lamola, who cut his softball teeth at the age of eight as a hobby.
MABEBA is Limpopo Softball Association’s Head of Marketing and Publicity and PRO of the Capricorn Sport Confederation.
