Monday, February 25, 2002 Allan Donald's career as a Test fast bowler ended in tears, literally, when he was helped from the field at the Wanderers last Friday. But a sorry demise should not be allowed to take the shine off a glorious decade. From the moment he arrived, at Bridgetown in April 1992 (when he took six wickets, including that of Brian Lara), Donald made international cricket more interesting.

He was a fabulous fast bowler - very fast, very hostile, very determined, very skilful, and very entertaining. More than that, he was a player who made things happen. There were wickets - 330 of them, more than any other South African, and second only to Dennis Lillee among white men who bowled consistently fast, as opposed to fast-medium. There were runs: at The Oval in 1994, when England were chasing 204 to level the series, Donald went for 96 off 12 overs. There were memorable pictures - the warpaint, the X-shaped appeal, the wide eyes, the dropped bat in the World Cup semi-final. And there were classic duels - chiefly with Mark Waugh, who was out to him 10 times, and Mike Atherton (who was out to him 11 times, not counting the famous one that wasn't given at Trent Bridge in 1998).

More than that, he became an ambassador and a role model. From an umpromising start - a Bloemfonteiner of Afrikaans stock, barely able to speak English - Donald blossomed into a rounded character, cosmopolitan and articulate, and a cricketer as well-liked and respected as any in South Africa's history. He could snarl and swear with the best of them, but he also had grace, as he showed in the middle of that red-mist spell at Trent Bridge, when Mark Boucher dropped Nasser Hussain off his bowling, and next over he ran all the way up from fine leg to give Boucher a no-worries-mate pat on the backside.

Some members of that first team after isolation soon fell by the wayside - Richard Snell, Mark Rushmere, the late Tertius Bosch. Donald lasted longer than any of them, even the batters, an extraordinary feat for an out-and-out paceman. With his departure, an era has ended. It's not his fault that he leaves the team in sudden disarray. As the first step towards repairing the damage, the UCB should make him bowling coach.

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