Abdul Aziz Temoor’s career started at age 15 when still a learner at Strand Secondary School.
He played for his school during the week and for Barbados Cricket Club in the local league under the Hottentots Holland Cricket Union on weekends.
The cricket talent started to shine in the local competition and the leg-spinner reeled in wickets week after week. Along with another SS shining star, André Becket, they later became regulars for Hottentots-Holland Cricket Club (HHCC), which amalgamated as a club under the auspices of the Western Prov€ ince Cricket Association (WPCA). In the late ’90s local clubs dissolved and a revived HHCC was formed after its collapse in the early ’90s due to the unification process.
HHCC had a long history and organised cricket was played since 1950. Temoor became a household name among the local cricket fraternity, but due to weak structures of a failed development programme in Western Province, he could not progress to the next level. The late cricket legend Yunus Thomas was his mentor at the time and worked hard with both Temoor and Becket to get the best out of them. The late Anthony Venter, liaison officer of HHCC, arranged with WPCA for an opportunity for Temoor to bowl in the nets against the national Proteas team, captained by the late Hansie Cronje, at Newlands. Temoor bowled to many superstars at the time, such as Gary Kirsten and Jonty Rhodes. He was praised by Cronje for his great talent and as a Grade 10 learner showed promise to become an upcoming star which never materialised due to a lack of opportunity.
Temoor was also a very good rugby player and played as a wing/centre for his school and the Helderberg regional team.
He was selected for the u-16 WP development schools team to participate in the national u-16 rugby tournament.
Temoor later played senior rugby, after leaving school, for Strand United RFC and also shone as a key player for the local clubs.
He was always on the road running miles to keep fit, a fitness fanatic who retired from rugby in his late 30s. Currently he is still an active regular in the Premier League Club Cricket for HHCC and outperforms many youngsters.
The community and especially the youngsters are ecstatic about his inclusion in the Proteas Veterans over-40 team, which will play in the World Cup Tournament next month and wish him well in the tournament.
