Koeksisters and centuries: The sweet secret behind Tazmin Brits' record-breaking year

FOR a generation of children spinach had magical powers. Their favourite cartoon character, Popeye the Sailor, would gobble it down, and instantly be charged up with superhuman strength to fight off villains.

Tazmin Brits, the superhero of the Proteas Women’s team, has now revealed that she also has a secret food that gives her extraordinary talents. Only it’s not green spinach smoothies for Brits, but in actual fact South Africa’s favourite doughy deep-fried sweet treat.

“I want to say maybe koeksisters,” Brits responded when asked what she’s been eating that has led her to becoming the first women’s cricketer to score five centuries in a calendar year.

It’s a well-known secret that batting coach Baakier Abrahams has a sweet tooth, and often keeps a few koeksisters in his kit bag, which could possibly be the motivation for Brits to drive from her George home to Gqeberha to meet Abrahams for extra net sessions outside of the Cricket SA-organised batting camps. 

Much of the work done at these private sessions revolved around Brits loosening up her sturdy bottom-handed grip and changing her body position which caused her to previously favour the leg-side. It has resulted in a weakness - playing through the off-side - being transformed into a strength with Brits scoring 68 of her 101 runs against New Zealand in Monday’s World Cup group match in Indore through that region.

The Brits cover drive may still not be as aesthetically pleasing as her opening partner and captain Laura Wolvaardt’s stylish flow of the bat, but it has become hugely effective, particularly straight down the ground where she uses her immense strength to muscle any over-pitched deliveries to the boundary.

“We've been having a lot of batting camps. I've just tried to expand my shot selection a bit more, and I've been working very hard on that,” said Brits, who has moved up to No 6 on the ICC Women’s ODI batting rankings.

“Also, the position where I stand, and also maybe just the way I play the shot a bit better. But I think I've just been working on it very hard.” 

Brits’ fiercely-competitive personality should not also be underestimated. Sometimes it can boil over - like it did in a domestic match for the Lions last season when she was embroiled in an altercation with the umpires and Western Province’s SA U19 captain Kayla van Reyneke at the Wanderers - but it's also the energy that fuelled the fire for her to help turnaround the Proteas’ fortunes at this World Cup after the Guwahati blowout against England last week. 

“It didn't sit well with me,” she said of the 10-wicket embarrassment. “I was actually very naar (nauseous). I didn't even want to eat that night, and I overthought the process completely. 

“But yeah, we put that in the past as quick as possible, and we said, we've got to move on to the next game.”

Brits may have missed out on the opportunity to compete for a javelin gold medal at the London 2012 Olympic Game after a car crash put an end to that dream, but she is enjoying a golden run with the bat in 2025. 

Four centuries in five ODIs. The first woman to score five centuries in a calendar year. Surpassing Australian legend Meg Lanning to become the fastest women’s batter to seven ODI centuries. And now also a first World Cup century - only the third Proteas Women’s batter to achieve this distinction. 

“This one was a bit fun,” Brits said. “For some reason, I was middling the ball a bit better, but I think the best century was the one in Pakistan where (Marizanne Kapp) Kappi and I batted for a long period of time. 

“I think that was the toughest century that I've had to make.”

With the number of centuries Brits has been ticking off, her ballerina pose in honour of her father and teammate Masabata Klaas’s 13-year-old daughter upon reaching a milestone has become a trademark. 

But on Monday against the White Ferns, Brits unleashed a different celebration by going down on bended knee like an archer before directing the arrow to her teammates in the dugout.

"I always do a ballerina for my dad , so I did that at 50,” Brits said. ““But Sinalo (Jafta) interviewed us, and I put it out to our fans (to tell me how they want me to celebrate). 

“Two young 13-year-old girls, one in Australia and South Africa (but both South Africans), who asked me to do that celebration, and the celebration was for them.”

Proteas Women fans will certainly be hoping that Brits will be shooting plenty more arrows as this World Cup progresses, starting against in-form co-hosts India on Thursday.