Batsman Lhuan-dre Pretorius was named Player of the Match after the Paarl Royals beat the Sunrisers Eastern Cape by nine wickets in Saturday’s SA20 fixture at Boland Park.
The 18-year-old Pretorius was on debut for the Royals – and hit 97 from 51 deliveries. He collected 10 fours and six sixes – and shared a 132-run partnership with fellow opener and England batsman Joe Root.
“It’s a real dream come true. I’m just trying to be like a sponge and soaking everything in,” said Pretorius.
“All the knowledge I’m getting from all the big players, coaches and everything, and especially batting with Joe out there. He only faced about four dots, so I could just find a rhythm and go with it.”
England captain Ben Stokes, who was going to play for MI Cape Town in the SA20 before being sidelined by injury, praised Pretorius on social media.
“One of the many things franchise cricket has done is give young/inexperienced but incredibly talented players opportunities on the biggest stage against the best in the world and show off how good they are,” said Stokes.
“Lhuan-dre Pretorius is doing that right now.”
Pretorius and Proteas batsman and Sunrisers captain Aiden Markram are team-mates at the Titans.
“He’s special. You look at him playing and you know that there’s not a lot of guys who can do those things. I know he actually works really, really hard as well,” added Markram.
“It’s nice to see someone so young, full of so much talent, but also with a really strong drive to do well. This was just the start of people getting to know who he is and what he’s all about.”
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