TimesofIndia.com in Gqeberha: Lhuan-dre Pretorius is 18 and has played for the South Africa U19s. He’s scored 338 runs this SA20 season.
Ryan Rickelton is 28 and cracked 303 runs in this third edition of the T20 league.
Kwena Maphaka is 18 and is early into his Proteas career while notching five wickets for MI Cape Town.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
21-year-old Dewald Brevis is also a newbie on the big stage while making his mark in the SA20 2025 – 253 runs and three wickets.
These four, and many more, are coming through the ranks and carrying the mantle for South African cricket as they undergo a resurgence having reached the T20 World Cup last year and booking a place in the World Test Championship final in June.
ALSO READ:Vernon Philander on Jasprit Bumrah’s workload management: ‘It’s a tough chat to have’
Former South Africa allrounder Vernon Philander believes the talent has always been there in South African cricket, it just needed to be brought to the fore with the right guidance.
Drawing parallels with past transitions, Philander noted how South Africa seamlessly moved from legends like himself, Dale Steyn, and Morne Morkel to Anrich Nortje, Marco Jansen, and Kagiso Rabada.
“South Africa’s always had a rich pool of talent. What a tournament like this (SA20) really does is it presents that sort of opportunity. With a six-team tournament, it allows your youngsters to come in and really excel and express themselves,” the SA20 commentator told select media during the first qualifier between MI Cape Town and Paarl Royals on Tuesday.
“You rub shoulders with real international superstars and I think that’s the confidence that these youngsters will take away at the end of the day, having been in the same team.
“Sometimes it’s not about the performance but it’s about the learning that takes place within that team. I think Paarl Royals, it’s a pity that they’ve lost Joe Root because I think he’s been exceptional. If you ask me about players who have really made an impact, I think Joe Root’s probably the one that comes to mind straight away. He’s left a massive legacy in terms of the experience that he’s carried over to those younger players. And like I said, it’s invaluable lessons learned for these youngsters,” he added.
During the league stage, Dinesh Karthik became the first Indian player to feature in the SA20. Philander, who included Suryakumar Yadav, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah in his wishlist for Indian players to come play the SA20, said rubbing shoulders with the veterans of the sport will aid South African cricket and its path forward.
“It was massively needed in South Africa to have a T20 league to give the guys exposure. I think what it has also done is, you have foreign international players that come down and interact with the domestic players which is important. To rub shoulders with the likes of Root, Williamson etc,” stated Philander who played 64 Tests, 30 ODIs and seven T20Is for South Africa.
“And as much as it is a T20 competition, there’s a lot of guys that, from a personal perspective, would learn a great deal. You can see, it’s starting to pay off.
“To make the World Test Championship Final was a massive (step) up for South Africa. Let’s not forget, South Africa being in the World Cup T20 Final. All in all, cricket in South Africa is going in the right direction.
“And for the first time, you have an Indian player in SA20. Dinesh Karthik is a wonderful athlete, he’s a wonderful professional. It’s great to have him over here. I think many of these guys, the youngsters especially, would learn a great deal from Karthik, having been a part of the IPL for a number of years.
“I think a lot of these youngsters, like Pretorius, in years to come, might end up in one of these IPL teams. And you’d have learned a great deal and would have had great insights up front, learning from a guy like Karthik, being in the same changing room as him,” further added Philander.
As it stands, Pretorius is the second-highest run-scorer this SA20 season with Rickelton in third. Brevis is seventh on the list. How they do by the end of the tournament, and for the Proteas later, remains to be seen.
