Cricket
Teenage sensation Maphaka excites Walter─── MORGAN PIEK 08:18 Thu, 22 Aug 2024
“He performed well in Under 19 World Cups, you go and run out for the Mumbai Indians in an IPL as a schoolboy, you know, he’s done some incredibly amazing things for a very young guy, and seems to have a really cool perspective on it all.”
The Proteas are excited to see the 18-year-old Kwena Maphaka in action during the three-match T20 International series against the West Indies. The left-arm seamer is on the brink of becoming one of the youngest players ever to play for South Africa at senior international level and his inclusion in the squad has generated a lot of excitement.
Maphaka, who has already played for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL, burst onto the scene for South Africa during the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup and earlier in 2023 he was the leading wicket-taker in the tournament hosted in South Africa.
While Maphaka is still very much a work in progress he is under the guidance of Allan Donald at the Lions.
The Proteas coach, Rob Walter, said this is the perfect opportunity to blood the young strike bowler.
“It’s been a lot of travel and a day off and yesterday was our first training, but my interactions with him in the past, I mean, he’s a wonderfully calm young guy, seems to have his head screwed on very well,” said Walter.
“We’ve seen him perform for the Lions in the domestic competition, you know, bowl super overs, and win games for them there. He performed well in Under 19 World Cups, you go and run out for the Mumbai Indians in an IPL as a schoolboy, you know, he’s done some incredibly amazing things for a very young guy, and seems to have a really cool perspective on it all.
Kwena Maphaka. Picture: ICC
“We were chatting just yesterday about the IPL experience and as much as the performance was in there, you know, there are not many schoolboys who can say they’ve already run out in front of a full Wankhede Stadium and got that under the belt and have that as a reference point from an experience point of view.
“Skill sets aside, I love his mindset, I love his calmness. As we said, you know, we see him as a strong potential for the Proteas moving forward and it was an ideal opportunity just to get him on tour and get him into the system, given full well an idea of what his potential is.”
The first T20 International in Tarouba gets underway tomorrow at 21:00.
