New Delhi, Dec 2 (IANS) Former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis has credited the SA20 for the recent surge in competitiveness in the men’s team in the International Cricket Council (ICC) tournaments, adding that he can see the impact similar to how the Indian Premier League (IPL) had on Indian cricket in its starting years.

The fourth season of SA20 comes at a time when the men’s team continued its good run in the ICC tournaments in 2025 – a semifinal finish in the Champions Trophy was followed by winning the World Test Championship (WTC) for the first time. Before that, South Africa had entered the semi-finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup and became runners-up in the 2024 T20 World Cup.

“That’s huge, as it’s not a coincidence that we’ve suddenly become really competitive in these ICC tournaments. As I said earlier, we were only hoping that something like this could come to South Africa a lot earlier because we saw what IPL did for Indian cricket. There’s a reason why Indian cricket has become so strong, it’s because of the IPL,” said Kallis to IANS in a virtual interaction ahead of the SA20 season four set to happen from December 26 to January 25.

“So SA20’s definitely played a huge role in getting us consistent and more competitive because the guys are playing under a little bit more pressure and the quality of cricket’s really good. So it’s played a massive role in where South African cricket is today and how quickly it’s moved forward in the last three or four years since SA20’s been around,” said Kallis.

The legendary all-rounder also shared his views on fast-bowling all-rounder Corbin Bosch, who has been a constant presence in the South African setup since last year and recently scored 67 against India in the ODI series opener in Ranchi.

Bosch had been a member of South Africa’s U19 World Cup-winning team in 2014, but made his senior international debut at 30 and picked 11 wickets to be the third highest wicket taker in MI Cape Town’s championship win in the midst of a magical last 12 months.

“After I first laid eyes on him a few years ago, I always thought he had something special. It’s taken a while for him to break through. But thankfully, he’s come through. He’s gained confidence as a genuine all-rounder who can bat and bowl. He bowls a heavy ball and bowls in the 140s, and hits it really hard. He’s another type of guy who can play different roles. He’s good enough to go anywhere in the order.”

“So I’m very happy to see him coming through. For that matter, (glad to see) all these all-rounders coming through because if you’ve got all-rounders coming through and you’ve got plenty of them on your side, it certainly strengthens your team, whether it be for South Africa or during the SA20.”

“So great to see them coming along, especially for him to finally fulfil, put his hand up, and realise his talent. It’s wonderful to see. I hope he has a big tournament now. He could certainly carry on building that name that he’s starting to build,” added Kallis.

–IANS

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