Not in His Wildest Dreams

Not even in his wildest dreams would Lhuan-dre Pretorius have fantasised that it could all have gone this well.

Bash 97 off 57 balls on your Paarl Royals debut. Hit the leading bowlers in Betway SA20 history Marco Jansen and Ottniel Baartman for six. And share a 132-run opening partnership with arguably the best batter in the world, Joe Root.

Not even in his wildest dreams would Lhuan-dre Pretorius have fantasised that it could all have gone this well.

“I was just thinking about winning the game, to be honest, before playing. If you told me before the game I’d get that score, I would take that any day. It’s a real dream come true,” Pretorius beamed.

The 18-year-old has patiently waited for over a year for his day in the spotlight after missing last year’s Betway SA20 due to SA U19 international commitments. It was during this global youth tournament that the powerfully built left-hander bunted 287 runs at an average of 57.40 – the sixth most runs in the competition and highest by a South African. The run tally included 37 boundaries – the most by any batter – and six maximums.

It was enough to convince the Royals to incorporate the Season 2 Rookie into their regular squad for this season. And after just one game the investment has already reaped the desired rewards.

The odds were always stacked in favour of the Royals though. Pretorius had been one of the standout schoolboys in the South African high school system for some time. Initially educated at St Stithians in Johannesburg where he was schoolmates with fellow Royals teen debutant Kwena Maphaka, Pretorius switched to Cornwall Hill College in Centurion for his Matric year due to the Titans having offered him his first senior professional contract.

The Titans talent scouts were certainly spot on with Pretorius recently striking a maiden First-Class century on debut whilst averaging 43.50 in List A cricket.

“I think I’ve found a nice rhythm and I’m in decent form, so I’m just trying to ride the wave for as long as possible. There’s obviously going to be ups and downs in this sport, as you all know. So I’m in good, decent form now, so I’m just trying to ride the wave,” Pretorius said.

“The school I matriculated at, Cornwall Hill College, was also helpful to me and they would help me a lot with schoolwork so I could focus more on cricket but also balance it with schoolwork. So yeah, it’s been a tough year, but an exciting year. Waiting for the results on Monday.”

There are few teenagers who can post a picture on Instagram of themselves standing in the middle of the pitch whilst batting with former England captain Root though.

But what actually could a Gen Z and a Millennial have been speaking about during their match-winning partnership?

“Joe just told me to keep pumping it!” Pretorius said.

The simplicity of the answer certainly is much like Pretorius batting style – hit the ball as hard as possible.

There is a distinct likeness to a certain Quinton de Kock in approach, both with willow in hand and behind the microphone.

It was left to Root to delve into more detail.

“He is such a strong boy, hits the ball so cleanly, and such a wide range of areas he can access, so it was just me telling him to time the ball and not over hit,” Root said.

“It was all about keeping things simple for him. The more he trusted his ability, the cleaner he struck it. He made things easy for me and hopefully, he can build on that and go to bigger and better things as the tournament progresses.”

Root may have enjoyed the best seat in the house to fully appreciate Pretorius pyrotechnics, but current England Test captain Ben Stokes was keeping a close eye too.

Stokes, who could have been possibly playing against Pretorius in the Betway SA20 Western Cape derby for MI Cape Town at Newlands on Monday but for an injury having ruled him out of the competition, was suitably impressed with the Royals teen.

“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. Lhuan-dre Pretorius is doing that right now,” Stokes posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Virtually emotionless the entire day despite his heroics, Pretorius could not hold back a smile when told of the England captain’s high praise.

“Stokes is actually my brother’s role model, and I also look up to him,” he said. “It means a lot to me.”

If Pretorius continues to play the way he did at Boland Park on Saturday, he and the Royals will be smiling for a little while yet.