Mzansi Super League (MSL) 2.0 is not just about bats and balls, but about love in action too.
SuperSport Park came to a standstill last Friday when one lucky couple’s dreams became a reality as they got engaged out on the field, in front of thousands of spectators at their favourite venue, during the Tshwane Spartans and Paarl Rocks clash.
Jacques Storm (32) decided that it was time to “do the right thing” and ask his girlfriend of three years, Lizelle Smit (24), for her hand in marriage.
What he might not have known was that his cameo inning would eclipse all cheers that might have been reserved for AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis and Tabraiz Shamsi on the night.
Storm, having given his idea to the tournament organisers, hoodwinked his soon-to-be fiancé into believing that they were lucky ticket winners and that they had to claim their ultimate prize out on the field during the interval break.
Then as the live SABC cameras were rolling, he got on one knee to ask Smit for her hand in marriage.
“Let me tell you this – my mouth was so dry. I was so nervous that I battled to get the words out, but I think I she understood what I was trying to say!” said Storm as he recalls the most important day of his life.
Jacques Storm proposed to his girlfriend Lizelle Smit during the Mzansi League match between the Paarl Rocks and the Tshwane Spartans last week. Photo: Supplied
“Lizelle was also so nervous she almost started crying. I think it was seeing so many people sitting and cheering behind us.
“I am a sporting person, having played SA Schools cricket when I was 19, so there was no other place for me to do what I considered the right thing to do, and to be with a person that has contributed immensely to me over the last two years. I didn’t want to do the obvious and go to a restaurant. I wanted to make it unique - so I am glad that I could get to do it in an MSL game.”
Smit also added: “I am not going to lie, I was definitely not expecting it, but it turned out to be a fantastic night. It turned out to be a really good shock.”
“I knew she was going to say yes…but my colleagues at work kept asking me, saying ‘what if she says no?’ in the days leading up to the event. I must confess, it did create some doubt. I was mostly convinced that she would say yes, because we had just moved in together the week before,” he said.
“The fans kept coming to congratulate us for the rest of the game. Even when we went out for drinks after the match, people recognised us. Let me put it this way: we have received plenty of venue suggestions for our marriage.” “We have not thought of a venue, but even if is behind the sightscreen at a cricket field, I am just glad that Lizelle said yes when I proposed to her.”