Won’t be surprised if Lhuan-dre Pretorius finds a place in IPL in future, says Dinesh Karthik

New Delhi, Feb 16 (IANS) For young Lhuan-dre Pretorius, the present moment is an exciting time in his cricketing career. The youngster achieved huge success as the highest run-scorer in SA20 2025 by accumulating 397 runs across 12 innings for Paarl Royals.

Add to it, the solid left-handed wicketkeeper-batter recently landed a deal with Hampshire for this year’s T20 Blast. Despite not having earned a senior South Africa team call-up yet, former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik predicts Pretorius’s inclusion in the IPL wouldn’t be surprising, based on his close observation as his teammate at Paarl Royals.

Karthik, who became the first Indian player to feature in SA20, also had a close look at young pacer Kwena Maphaka, whose career has skyrocketed in the last 12 months. Teenaged fast bowler Maphaka’s meteoric rise includes winning Player of the Tournament in the Under-19 World Cup, signing with the Mumbai Indians in the IPL, and debuting for the senior South African team across all three formats.

He will be a traveling reserve for South Africa’s Champions Trophy team, and then return to the IPL 2025 from March 22 for the Rajasthan Royals.

“Both are good talents. Lhuan-dre, obviously, was the highest run-getter in the league and to do that as a youngster in year one is never easy. So it tells you a lot about his talent. They all will have a very bright future.

“I hope they don’t get pressurized too much. They genuinely are match winners. Kwena bowls a quick ball and he’s someone when he gets it right, it’s hard to play. Lhuan-dre, on the other hand, has all the shots you require in the book, a very good mindset. As he plays more competitive cricket, there are going to be challenges, but he’s got the skill to definitely conquer all those challenges.

“I wish them all the very best because I feel the next 12 months, if I do go back, they’re going to be very different cricketers, very confident and one that’s going to definitely have gotten better. So it’s going to be a great journey. As soon as the SA20 finished, I saw Lhuan-dre, he’s been picked for Hampshire for their NatWest (T20) Blast (games).

“So it tells you that everybody’s watching (him) in the world. Today, every tournament that you play, you have scouts watching. So you get picked up in various places. I won’t be surprised in the near future if Lhuan-dre finds a place in IPL as well,” said Karthik to IANS in a select virtual interaction on Sunday.

While Paarl didn’t win, Maphaka and Pretorius gained immensely from Karthik’s experience, learning to combine their youthful enthusiasm with his words of wisdom.

Karthik, set to assume the role of batting coach for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2025, derived considerable satisfaction from mentoring young players in the high-velocity world of T20 cricket in South Africa.

“A lot of the times, post the games, we always have had this group get-together. You end up talking to a lot of young boys and they all have their own pressures. For example, during the tournament, just after the first game, Lhuan-dre and Kwena Maphaka passed their 12th exams. So that was a big deal for them. That’s where they are. That’s how young they are.

“So the way they look at the sport, and its challenges is very different. Like, speaking to them, interacting with them, and making them understand at times it’s not that important to keep focusing on something, whereas you can relax a lot more and be chilled away from the game.”

“I just inculcated (in them) a little bit of what I have learned during my time of playing the sport. So it was a good experience. As I said, I believe passing on your knowledge, slash sharing your knowledge is one of the most important aspects. Being a sportsman, and being someone who is old enough to help a lot of young boys, I enjoyed that part as well,” he elaborated.

At Paarl’s Boland Park, Karthik not only appreciated the scenic views but also saw the franchise become the first team to bowl a full 20-over innings by using only spinners against the Pretoria Capitals. Will this proactive bowling strategy become a trend in other T20 franchise leagues, including the IPL?

While Karthik sounded upbeat by drawing parallels between conditions in Paarl and Tamil Nadu, he noted that the success of this strategy hinges on the strong support from the pitch to spinners.

“More than other leagues like the IPL, I think it’s got to do with the pitches. In Paarl, it was actually like playing for Tamil Nadu. We focused a lot more on spinners. We had a lot more spinners in the team, and the pitches also aided spinners. That’s why we bowled 20 overs of spin and we were very successful in that game.”

“I’m sure in the near future, if there are grounds which are aiding spin and they won’t think twice to bowl 20 overs of spin or probably at least 16 overs of spin. If the pitch is slow, it’s going to turn and it’s harder to hit (against) spinners than fast bowlers.”

Nineteen years ago, a young Dinesh Karthik played his first T20I in South Africa in 2006, a time when T20 was the novel concept. A year later, Karthik was a member of the T20 World Cup winning team in South Africa, a moment which was the seed of IPL becoming the behemoth it is now.

Karthik’s recent South African T20 sojourn provided him a close look towards the country’s promising players, including Pretorius and Maphaka, who could well turn out to be future stars for South Africa and the IPL.

–IANS

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