Daryll Cullinan. (Gallo Images)
- Ex-Proteas cricketer Daryll Cullinan says he’s been battling prostate cancer of late.
- Cullinan said his recovery is on track but urged all men to go for regular medical check-ups.
- In a wide-ranging interview, Cullinan also hit out at former SA captain Faf du Plessis for writing an autobiography.
Former Proteas batsman Daryll Cullinan has opened up about his recent battle with cancer.
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Cullinan, who played in 70 Tests and 138 ODIs for South Africa from 1993 to 2001, was speaking on The Cricket Nomad podcast earlier this week.
The 56-year-old said the diagnosis had come as a shock, but he was happy to share that he recently received his first “zero reading”.
“I’ve been dealing with prostate cancer. Just out of the blue, a routine check, and then got diagnosed.
“I had it removed but it was still about … I’ve been through radiation and hormone therapy, which I’m still under. But I’m still on track for [a] cure.
“Last Thursday I got my first proper zero reading, but the hormone therapy plays a role in starving the cancer cells because they live off testosterone. And that’s what the hormone therapy does, it blocks your production of testosterone,” he said.
Cullinan urged all men to go for regular medical check-ups.
“Go and get [tested]. Have your blood [samples] taken. I had no noticeable signs of it. There must be hundreds of thousands of men out there with no noticeable signs that are living [with it] until it’s too late.”
In the wide-ranging interview (WATCH above), Cullinan also shared his views on the current state of cricket, late former Proteas captain Hansie Cronje, and touched on the Faf du Plessis incident that made headlines last year.
In his autobiography Faf: Through Fire, Du Plessis recalled an incident with Cullinan when he was a young cricketer at the Titans.
Du Plessis said Cullinan made his dressing room experience uncomfortable when he went to sit next to him in a team meeting. According to Du Plessis, Cullinan said: “What the f**k are you doing next to me? Why the f**k are you sitting here?”
Cullinan subsequently disputed Du Plessis’ account, and in the latest interview, he criticised Du Plessis for writing the book.
“He’s had a good career. I’ve been a big fan of his cricket, so it kind of took me by surprise. One would have thought he would have taken a bit more of a dignified approach … even his approach to (Mark) Boucher and (Graeme) Smith …” Cullinan said.
“And one of the worst-kept secrets in the world of cricket is the contempt and the poor relationship he has with AB (de Villiers). They’re not friends. Faf threw AB under the bus at school still. My opinion is that he worked AB out as captain and my opinion is that I think AB wouldn’t come back if Faf was captain. Faf portrayed this friendship, there’s no friendship there. That’s one of the worst-kept secrets.
“The way he has gone about it (writing the book) has been poor, he’s been poorly advised and he’s just been on an ego trip.”