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.