Mumbai Indians handed a debut to South Africa's teen sensation Kwena Maphaka today in the 8th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) season against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. He wasn't even in the original squad of the five-time champions and was only signed as a replacement of Dilshan Madhushanka, who got ruled out due to injury, a couple of days before the start of IPL.
For the unversed Kwena Maphaka's IPL salary this season is only INR 20 lakh and was the player of the tournament in the U19 World Cup that was played in South Africa earlier this year. He picked up 21 wickets in just six innings at an average of 9.71. Thanks to his excellent show in the mega event, Kwena also played in the CSA T20 Challenge for the Lions and picked up seven wickets in just four matches.
Kwena also had it in him to become the cricketer having first picked up a cricket ball at the age of three and then playing in his school's Under-9 team when he was just six years old. The progress for him continued as he played first international at the Under-19 level at 15. "I've been told I started playing because my brother needed someone to play backyard cricket with.
"The first memory that I have is from about four years old, and it was of typical garden cricket with an older brother. He would get me out early and then I'd bowl at him the whole day and he'd hit me out of the garden. Well, I wouldn't call it bowling. I was just throwing the ball at him," Kwena said while speaking to ESPNCricinfo during the U19 World Cup.
His effort at the U19 World Cup picking up 21 wickets was the second most ever in the tournament history and fast forward to a couple of months later, the youngster is playing in the IPL for Mumbai Indians.
