Allan Donald looking forward to young pacers Bosch, Yusuf & Maphaka in SA20

Mumbai, Dec 23 (IANS) The SA20 domestic T20 league is slowly changing the South African cricket landscape and the upcoming Season 3 of the tournament will be keenly watched for the performance of some emerging players. South Africa fast bowling legend Allan Donald will keenly watch the performance of three young pacers Eathen Bosch, Codi Yusuf and Kwena Maphaka in Season 3.

While the 18-year-old Kwen Maphaka has made his South Africa debut in Tests and ODIs this year and has been snapped up by Rajasthan Royals for the upcoming IPL season, Bosch has recently made it to the national team and is an exciting prospect for the future.

Speaking on which young fast bowlers he is excited to watch in SA20 Season 3, Donald said, “There are about three bowlers—South African bowlers—that I’m really looking forward to seeing, and those three guys are Eathen Bosch, who’s playing for the Pretoria Capitals, and Codi Yusuf, who’s playing for Paarl Royals, and young Kwena Maphaka.

“Those three young South Africans—Bosch, probably the more experienced—he’s been around for a while. I’m really pleased for him that he’s finally got a South African call-up. He’s been really on the fringes and has struggled to get in there because of other guys who have been punching the lights out.

“So, for me, those three guys—especially Bosch, but young Kwena Maphaka, an 18-year-old—you know, I think the whole of Paarl is very excited that he’s here. There’s huge excitement about him being in this team. I think we’re going to see a lot of him this year. Lots of experiences will be felt by Kwena Maphaka. I think he’s such a talent; he is just a freak, you know.

“So, yeah, he’s going to have some good days, and he’s going to have some bad days, but he seems to have this head on his shoulders that is just very freakishly calm and not phased about too many things when it goes badly. He just wants to stay in the fight all the time. So I think he’s going to be box office this coming January. I can’t wait to see him being very successful, I hope,” said Donald.

Speaking on how SA20 has changed the dynamics of cricket in South Africa, SA20 Ambassador and South Africa fast bowling legend Allan Donald said, “When I sat back as a viewer and I watched this thing unfold, I remember saying I was here at Boland Park, where I live in Paarl, and I saw Graeme Smith, and it was sort of three or four games into the SA20. I saw the crowd at Boland Park, and I saw the amount of interest globally, and the viewership that was shown to me a couple of days later was astronomical, and that is what people want to see.

“I think the rest of the world is watching. You’ve got the Big Bash and you’ve got the IPL, which is just a product on its own—it’s just massive. And then SA20 has the potential to go past the Big Bash, seeing that it’s only a month long. And also, the Australian crowds are huge, but this means so much to cricket in South Africa and domestically.

“Because I left a few weeks ago, we don’t have any more domestic cricket until next year. So, a lot of the guys are kind of jealous of where everyone else is going. But the learning and the watching that will be done by those players not involved in the SA20 will be huge because they want to become—they want to punch the door down to becoming the next Kwena Maphaka, the next Rassie van der Dussen, and Reeza Hendricks.

“So the interest is just—I mean, the television interest that’s been created over the years… Like I’ve said before, the ticket sales have gone through the roof, youngsters are ready to go, merchandise is flying off the shelves—it’s massive,” said Donald.

Donald also spoke about the injuries suffered by fast bowlers due to high-level competition as they play in the national team, ODIs, domestic first-class cricket, and various T20 leagues around the world.

“The injuries, unfortunately, to a guy like Anrich Nortje, who’s a box-office bowler, and a couple of others, it’s not ideal. It’s not ideal. What the rest of the world wants to see—what young fans around the world want to see—is a guy bowling at 155 clicks and making things happen. So it’s unfortunately the brutality of the world game and where it is,” said Donald.

“Something I keep saying is that you know, I’ve only played two T20 matches in my entire career, right at the back end of it. So, what these guys are going through now—all the leagues—I’m not surprised that a lot of the guys will miss a league here, a tournament there, and maybe even for their country. It’s just, it’s an ongoing cycle that I think is, you know, it’s hard to stop. It’s the level of stress that gets put on the bodies, unfortunately. But again, it’s an opportunity for someone else to stake a claim. So, yeah, and that’s what we want to see,” he added.

Speaking on which captain has impressed him the most in the SA20, Donald picked out Durban Super Giants captain Keshav Maharaj as the one to watch out for.

“I think, jeez, there are some good captains, aren’t they? And I’m going to be super biased, you know, and I’m going to single out my captain at DSG and our left-arm spinner. You know, I think he’s a wonderful guy. I’ve been watching him for quite some time, and, you know, he’s been absolutely—Keshav Maharaj—he has been absolutely fantastic, quietly going about his things,” said Donald.

He said the combination of Keshav Maharaj and coach Lance Klusener will be keenly watched.

“But I’ve also spoken to him (Keshav Maharaj) on the phone a few times, and, you know, he’s incredibly passionate—not just for his domestic team, obviously, playing for South Africa, but when it comes to that DSG (Durban Super Giants) team, I mean, the players seem to really warm to him. And also working with Lance Klusener, two hometown boys, they—I think, you know, they get on really, really well. They understand each other really well. So I think, you know, the team—when I speak to a few of the members there, especially Lance and some of the coaching staff—Keshav Maharaj has got a good thing going there with Lance Klusener.

“So, yeah, look, I think there’s so many great captains around, you know. There are so many fantastic players. I’m just super, super stoked that I’m involved this year and hopefully for a good few years to come. So, yeah, I’m just like a kid in a candy store at the moment. You know, it’s so nice to be involved in such a major tournament in your home country that’s producing such levels of success over the first two years. So I’m really, really stoked about it,” said Donald, who retired from Test cricket with 330 wickets in 72 Tests and with 272 scalps in 164 ODIs.

After retirement, Donald has worked as a bowling coach and consultant with the England team, County Cricket Club Warwickshire and Kent, domestic teams in Zimbabwe and South Africa, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka national teams.

In IPL, he was the bowling coach of the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2011 and the bowling and head coach of Pune Warriors India in 2012 and 2013, respectively.

–IANS

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