Muted welcome for Proteas Women on return from T20 World Cup

JOHANNESBURG - The Proteas women's cricket team is back in the country after finishing as the runners-up at the T20 World Cup.

The team received a muted welcome from the sparse crowd gathered at OR Tambo International Airport when they landed on Tuesday morning.

Only a few supporters were able to take time off from work and make their way to the airport to show their support for the Proteas following their loss to New Zealand in the final.

The majority of the crowd of between 50 and 100 people consisted of friends and family of the players, sponsors, and Cricket South Africa employees.

Supporters Neil and Jes Cooper felt it was important to show the Proteas the same support that other successful teams have been shown before.

"They don’t really feature in the limelight and to give them support, show them what they’re doing matters," Neil said.

"It can’t harm anything. It benefits everybody and grows the sport in general. So, to do both sides – to support men’s and women’s – it’s just pros [for] everyone," Jes added.