The Proteas’ teenage fast-bowling sensation Kwena Maphaka has learned a lot on and off the field during their T20 International series against West Indies.
Not only did the 18-year-old make his senior international debut and played in all the games in the 3-0 series defeat against the Windies, but he also managed to get in some study time ahead of his matric finals.
While bowling bouncers in the middle, Maphaka had to make sure he prepares for his history, biology, accounting and mathematics core preliminary exams before taking on the finals towards the end of he year.
“When I go home, it’s into prelims again. I have been studying on tour, unfortunately,” said Maphaka with a sheepish smile.
“It’s going to be a little bit of studying and a little bit of work. After prelims it’s the finals and then done with school!”
Debut Time!🇿![CDATA[]]>🇦
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) August 24, 2024
Teenage fast-bowling sensation, Kwena Maphaka being handed his senior cap by Lungi Ngidi Thursday evening.👊
What a moment for the youngster as he became the youngest man to make his debut for South Africa in Internationals!👏![CDATA[]]>😃![CDATA[]]>🏏#WozaNawe #BePartOfIt #SAvWI pic.twitter.com/AQxSo6zgrH
So there was hardly time to day dream for Maphaka, who became the youngest ever player to make his Proteas debut. But at this point the final months of his school career feels like it’s just going to be a small speed bump in the way a glorious cricketing career.
There was enough evidence that this kid is still going to feature in a lot of matches for South Africa, after standing tallest in a rather tame Proteas bowling effort against the West Indies.
Maphaka showed some fight to go with his undoubted ability. He took 1/25 in the first match off 3.5 overs went for just 7.25 an over in his second match.
The rain-shortened third match didn’t quite go to plan, as the youngster conceded 34 runs in his two overs when all the bowlers got some tap. But all-in-all, this experience has given him the taste of the big time to make the transition from international age-group cricket a lot smoother.
“Being the youngest player to represent South Africa is a privilege and it’s a great honour. It’s something that I’m going to hold dear to my heart for a very long time,” said Maphaka.
“It’s an amazing feeling, something I’ve been dreaming about my whole life to represent the Proteas. To be the youngest to do it is the cherry on top of the cake.
“From a very young age people said that I have a lot of talent. Cricket is something that I really wanted to pursue, probably from the age of six, seven years old I wanted to be a Proteas player.”
Kwena Maphaka bowling a brilliant 19th over to 2 big hitters at the age of 18
We have so much to look forward topic.twitter.com/TkpilFBGxD
Maphaka was part of the ICC Under-19 World Cups squads in 2023 and 2024. He played a starring role in the 2024 event on home soil, earning the Player-of-the-Tournament award with a haul of 21 wickets at a ridiculous average of 9.71.
He also made his domestic T20 debut for the Lions and Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League earlier this year.
The IPL debut didn’t quite go according to plan, with nerves seemingly getting the better of the youngster. But he took that experience into his Proteas debut series took a wicket in first game.
“There has been a few times where I put pressure on myself in a debut, but didn’t want to do that this time,” Maphaka said.
“I came out thinking ‘you’re making your Proteas debut and you’re going to be the youngest to do it ... go out there and enjoy the opportunity. You are here because you are good enough’.
“Saucy [captain Aiden Markram] was chatting to me, saying keep calm and do what you normally do and show us what you are made of. That was really important for me to keep me calm and keep me going.”
Maphaka certainly didn’t stand back against the West Indies, despite his tender age. There was quite a few bouncers during his spells.
It’s the sort of attitude — to go with with ability — that will help him make a success of his international career.
A wicket on debut for Kwena Maphaka 👏
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) August 23, 2024
The sky is the limit for this 18-year-old superstar 🌟#WozaNawe | #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/OukuejkQjF
“I have definitely been asked about the bouncers quite often. It’s something that I enjoy doing ... I like being in the batsman’s face and creating a battle, even if there are no words involved,” he said.
“That keeps me in the game and it let’s them know that I’m not here to play around. It’s quite a statement that I like to make.”
For now, however, he needs to make a statement in his upcoming matric exams.
@JohnGoliath82