Ken Borland

Heinrich Klaasen will be playing in his third T20 World Cup but, given how complete a batsman he has become in the format, it is astonishing to think that he has only played four matches for the Proteas in the two previous editions of the showpiece event.

In the 2021 T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, Klaasen only played in the opening two matches, scoring a run-a-ball 13 against Australia but did not bat against the West Indies. He then made way for Quinton de Kock or Reeza Hendricks, depending on how you looked at the shuffled batting line-up.

The following year, in Australia, he played in South Africa’s last two games, both lost, as the replacement for the injured David Miller, scoring 15 and 21.

The Proteas will depend far more heavily on Klaasen in this year’s World Cup, which got underway in the early hours of this morning, with South Africa opening their campaign against Sri Lanka in New York on Monday evening (SA time). That’s because the 32-year-old now smashes the cricket ball with so much power and consistency that he is undoubtedly considered to be one of the best T20 batsmen in the world.

Which is why the Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him for nearly R12 million for the Indian Premier League in 2023 and he has certainly repaid them. Klaasen averaged 49.78 and scored at a blistering strike-rate of 177.08 last year, and last week he helped his team into the 2024 final by scoring 479 runs at 39.92 and a strike-rate of 171.07.

This year’s figures included what he called a mid-season slump in which he scored ‘only’ 42 runs in three innings.

Now at the height of his powers, Klaasen finds ways of dealing with the immense pressure of expectation from the fanatical Indian fans and the team owners paying millions for his services, which should stand him and his fellow IPL stars in good stead during the more nervewracking moments of the World Cup. More often than not, Klaasen’s route to success is by not changing anything – he says staying true to himself and his game-plan is the key.

“I was a little disappointed because I was quite average in the middle of the IPL, but I was still pleased with my figures after such a bad run and hopefully I can carry that into the World Cup,” Klaasen told Rapport from Fort Lauderdale this week.

“My success is based on not moving away from what I do and during that dip, I moved away from my game-plan. I was trying to chase a strike-rate of more than 200 because the pitches were good for batting in the IPL and the execution of the batsmen was on another level. My strike-rate had dropped to 180 and I started to look at my numbers rather than just play.

“I was trying to hit more sixes to try and get back to 200. But I had a nice, hard chat with myself and also spoke with AB de Villiers, and stopped looking at my numbers. I got back to what I normally do and my form came right back immediately. The problem was my focus was wrong.

“But in the IPL you are measured by the number of sixes you hit and your strike-rate, no-one looks at your average. And the impact sub rule meant everyone was playing with a lot more freedom, so there’s a lot of pressure on you because strike-rate is your bread-and-butter. And then you have a couple of interviews where the media highlight your stats and then your first six balls don’t go according to plan and it plays in your head. You don’t follow your process. You just have to be mentally strong enough to recognise it and not fall into the trap,” Klaasen said.

Speaking of mental strength, it is an area of the Proteas’ game that is always under the spotlight at World Cups, but Klaasen, a phlegmatic character at the best of times, believes the number of players in the squad who have experienced and performed under the heaving pressure of the IPL should ensure there is no choking or puking due to nervousness.

“A lot of the guys have played in the IPL, where there is a lot of pressure and expectation. So we can tap into that, stay nice and calm and just focus on our execution. I firmly believe that if we execute well, then there’s no team that can beat us. And the majority of our IPL players are in good form too.

“In our last three World Cups [including the 2023 50-over event in India], we had only one bad one in Australia. In the UAE, we lost one out of five matches but missed out on nett run-rate, and in last year’s ODI World Cup in India we played some unbelievable cricket and reached the semi-finals.

“So we are playing good world cup cricket. The squad has a maturity about it and we are gelling nicely. We just have to play the big moments well,” Klaasen said.

But before Proteas fans get into a froth about the knockout stages, South Africa still have to clean up some awkward opposition in their opening group.

“Our first few matches are going to be our most important,” Klaasen said. “We are in a tricky group – Sri Lanka are very dangerous, the Netherlands have beaten us twice before and Bangladesh can beat any team on their day.

“So it’s important we get off to a very good start, that will relax us and then we can keep building on our confidence and focus on what we do best and our intensity,” Klaasen said.

Now they just need the rain forecast for Monday morning in New York to stay away …

Heinrich Klaasen ensured that he will remain one of the most sought-after players in whatever T20 league auctions he wishes to put his name forward for with a breathtaking, extraordinary innings at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Friday that blew Australia away and allowed South Africa to level the ODI series at 2-2.

Klaasen plundered 174 off just 83 deliveries to lead the Proteas, who had been sent in to bat, to an imposing 416 for five. Australia were then bowled out for 252, as South Africa registered their second biggest victory over their great rivals, triumphing by 164 runs.

The first half of the Proteas innings was a cautious affair as the top-order never seemed entirely sure what a two-paced pitch that also provided some nibble off the seam was going to do. After 25 overs, the score was 120 for two, Quinton de Kock (45), Reeza Hendricks (28) and Rassie van der Dussen (62 off 65 balls) having done a fine job in laying a solid platform.

The first ball of the 26^th over saw Aiden Markram (8) caught at extra cover off Michael Neser, bringing Klaasen to the crease. Even though he breezed to a 38-ball half-century, he did not look as though he had hit top gear.

In fact, as Klaasen said later, it was actually Van der Dussen’s aggression that provided the spark. The pair of Pretoria-born batsmen had added 74 off 59 balls for the fourth wicket when Van der Dussen was caught behind attacking Josh Hazlewood, leaving South Africa on 194 for four in the 35^th over.

What followed was utter mayhem as Klaasen and David Miller (82 not out off 45 balls) lashed another 222 runs off just 100 deliveries, including a scarcely-believable 173 runs in the last 10 overs. From eyeing 300 to hoping for 350 and then totally exceeding that too, it was an onslaught that brought back memories of the famous 438 game against the same rivals down the road at the Wanderers in 2006.

Remarkably, the Australian attack actually did not bowl as badly as the figures suggest. It was just that whatever plan they came up with for the rampant Klaasen, the 32-year-old had an answer and it almost always involved a boundary. He hit 13 fours and 13 sixes in less than two hours of batting. Middle-stump yorkers were blasted back over bowlers’ heads; full and wide deliveries were steered with an open blade over backward point.

And, counter-intuitively given how he seemed to have a shot for every delivery, Klaasen said his success these last couple of years is down to him actually decreasing the number of options he employs.

“In the last few years, the turning point for me has been taking a lot of options out of my bag. When I was young, you look up to a guy like AB de Villiers and you try and play all the shots.

“But the genius is in knowing when to play them. Like a golfer who’s trying to hit the green every time, you have to stick to the game-plan and use the right clubs. Now I have three different options for every game and I play every ball as it is, I don’t try and recap the previous ball.

“I didn’t know how many sixes I had hit, which shows I was only focused on the next moment, my mind was in the right space. I went through a bad phase in my career when I was taking a risk too early in my innings and I ended up being dropped from the Proteas.

“I came back to my domestic team [Titans] and my coaches [Mark Boucher, Richard das Neves and Matthew Reuben] said I’m using too many options. Richard and Matthew have done lots of work throwing thousands of balls at me, and Albie Morkel has also given me some great ideas,” Klaasen said on Friday night.

The willingness to avail himself of advice was also backed by an enormous amount of work in the nets.

“I never used to be one for hitting a lot of balls, but I had to because I had to invest in my batting. I developed a blueprint in training and it’s still working. Now I stand still and watch the ball and almost just let my body take over with what I’ve practised. It also involves a lot of homework on the opposition, it’s all about options and taking what’s on offer from the bowlers,” Klaasen said.

In the field, the Proteas were also much improved up front with the new ball. Lungi Ngidi removed both David Warner (12) and Mitchell Marsh (6) in the first five overs, and his final figures of four for 51 in eight overs were a welcome return to form for him.

The dangerous Travis Head was struck twice on the hand by the pacy but inconsistent Gerald Coetzee, and retired hurt for 17 off 11 balls, and it fell to wicketkeeper Alex Carey to try and keep things going with the bat for Australia.

Although never ahead of the steep required run-rate, the tourists were also not too far behind and when the towering frame of Tim David (35) began unveiling the big hits in a stand of 72 off 53 balls with Carey, it looked possible that the Proteas might still be involved in a close finish.

But Ngidi returned to remove David, Markram taking an excellent running catch at extra cover, and Kagiso Rabada then wrapped things up with three for 41 in 7.5 overs. Carey was the last wicket to fall, Rabada denying him a century when he had him caught behind gloving a hook for 99 off 77 deliveries.

The Proteas have discovered a new lease on life in the last two matches, setting up a series-decider at the Wanderers on Sunday. With Klaasen and Markram riding high after their extraordinary centuries in Potchefstroom and Centurion, and the rest of the batsmen in the runs too, the batting unit will go to the World Cup in good shape.

Spinner Keshav Maharaj, Ngidi and Rabada were impressive with the ball and the bowling attack will want to build on the progress shown.

In the meantime, Klaasen can bask in the glory of what he said was the sort of innings that only comes around once or twice in a career.

That’s how special it was.

The Proteas will be eager to improve their batting against the Indian fast bowlers in the second ODI in Ranchi on Sunday, but at least they know they are unlikely to be put to a tougher test against spin than they were in the first match.

Despite the Lucknow pitch turning square in the first ODI, Heinrich Klaasen (74* off 65) and David Miller (75* off 63) added 139 in 17.4 overs to take South Africa to a matchwinning total of 249/4 in a game reduced to 40 overs a side by rain.

But the top-order once again struggled, with seamer Shardul Thakur removing Janneman Malan and Temba Bavuma cheaply. The amount of swing and movement up front has been a standout feature of the white-ball games in India so far, but thankfully Quinton de Kock has batted beautifully in the last three matches to counter that.

“Obviously the ball spun a lot, but we’ve been working hard over the last couple of years to play in these conditions,” Klaasen said. “Our game-plan is to sweep both ways and it worked well.

“We definitely picked the right game-plan for the conditions, we just wanted to take the danger-ball, which was on a good length and turning a lot, out of play and rotate the strike.

“It has not been easy up front for both sides, and we also bowled very well at the start of India’s innings, but Quinny played an exceptional innings. A lot of people might look past his 48, but it was very vital.

“It meant we were still in a good position when Davo and I came in. It’s fantastic batting with him, his tempo makes it so easy, and we just said we must keep going and not let the tail come in in these conditions,” Klaasen said.

The nine-run victory in the first ODI gained precious 50-over World Cup qualification points for the Proteas, but Klaasen said their focus is just as much on not wasting the opportunity to get time in the middle ahead of the T20 World Cup later this month.

“We need to win nine out of nine games to maybe have a chance of automatic qualification, so that is very hard, but we will definitely try,” Klaasen said.

“But the World Cup coming up now is our goal. Next year’s World Cup is important too, but this series is also useful building up to the T20 World Cup.

“Of course we want to win every game in a South African jersey and we will just take it game for game,” Klaasen said.

The 31-year-old wicketkeeper/batsman also bemoaned the departure of all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius from the squad with a fractured thumb. They are both gutsy characters, showing the sort of temperament Test captain Dean Elgar always rates highly, never mind their white-ball worth.

“Dwaine is a big loss and it was a sad moment when we found out on the morning of the game,” Klaasen said. “I thought it was just a little thumb injury. I’m quite close to Dwaine, we have been through a lot to get here, and he is a massive loss.”

The grand batting of David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen, and excellent bowling up front, gave South Africa control of the first ODI against India, before the home team produced the mother of all late charges to give the Proteas a big scare in Lucknow on Thursday.

Miller and Klaasen came together with South Africa struggling on 110 for four in the 23^rd over. But the skill and composure of the duo was exceptional as they stopped the rot and then cut loose, scoring 85 runs in the last 10 overs.

The in-form Miller struck a fiery 75 not out off 63 balls, with five fours and three sixes, while Klaasen was unbeaten on 74 off 65 deliveries, a fine supporting act that saw him hit six fours and a couple of sixes.

Their outstanding unbeaten partnership of 139 in 17.4 overs lifted South Africa to 249 for four in 40 overs, the match being reduced after the start of play had been delayed for an hour-and-45-minutes. They lost the toss and were sent in to bat on a tricky pitch offering seam and turn, and Quinton de Kock kept the top-order together with 48 off 54.

Kagiso Rabada and Wayne Parnell then produced superb tight lines with the new ball, forcing both openers to play on.

Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj then turned the screw, conceding just 23 runs in his eight overs and getting the wicket of Ishan Kishan, caught at leg-slip for 20.

That left India 51 for four in the 18^th over and their required run-rate soon grew to more than 9.5 runs per over.

But Shreyas Iyer showed what a dangerous hitter he is, lashing 50 off 37 balls, and Sanju Samson and Shardul Thakur (33 off 31) added 93 in 11 overs.

The brilliant Rabada (8-2-36-2) and Lungi Ngidi (8-0-52-3) took key wickets at the death and Tabraiz Shamsi, who was badly out of sorts, had 29 runs to defend in the last over.

Samson set up an incredible finish as he scored 15 off the first three balls (including a wide), but Shamsi finally managed to get the ball on a fuller length and a slog-sweep failed to find the boundary, no run being taken, and India’s thrilling chase came to an end, the Proteas winning by nine runs.

Samson finished with a superb 86 not out off 63 balls, tempering his usually aggressive game at the start, but then scoring with astonishing freedom at the death.