Pretorius, the teen rising star of South Africa cricket

EVERY now and then, a young athlete grabs the eyeballs of an unsuspecting crowd like a supernova. In T20s, just because of the way the format works, it's almost instantaneous. Clips are uploaded and regurgitated across various platforms. Bonafide superstars -- and influencers -- are compelled to put out their two pence. Fans of the game rush to find the remote control thanks to FOMO.

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN @Gqeberha

All of this happened at Boland Park on the afternoon of January 11, three days into SA20s third edition. Batting first, Sunrisers Eastern Cape had made a perfectly acceptable 175/5. What followed over the next one hour and change was some of the most audacious strokeplay you could imagine from an 18-year-old. It's why Paarl Royals' Lhuandré Pretorius is already on his way to becoming one of the format's most in-demand batters. That he's a left-hander only adds value to his stock as that particular batting type at the top-of-the-order is a point of difference.