Patience and more match time will see Proteas bowler Kwena Maphaka fulfil his potential
The trouble with doing the latter is the sport's jam-packed schedule which, for a new fast bowling talent, means that in 2025 the route to the top of the game involves a very different journey than it did for a teenage fast bowler starting a career in 2005.
Maphaka played in just his fifth first-class match last week. It was also his second Test and his 13th match this year, of which 11 were T20s.
'He's involved worldwide in leagues and plays a lot of T20 cricket, so when it comes to Test cricket it involves a different way of approaching your bowling,' Proteas bowling coach Piet Botha said on Friday.
Our Proteas Men are back on the grind and putting in the hard yards ahead of the 2nd Test against Zimbabwe 💪🏏
Fired up to seal a 2-0 series victory in Bulawayo! 👊🇿🇦 #WozaNawe pic.twitter.com/GakgFxkhQM
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) July 3, 2025
Maphaka had an inauspicious outing in the first Test conceding 80 runs in 22 overs across the two Zimbabwean innings and finishing the match wicketless.
In an otherwise excellent outing for an inexperienced Proteas attack, Maphaka was disappointing and Botha admitted the young bowler was down in the dumps.
More importantly however, Maphaka was also keen to take the lessons out of the first Test, and has been locked in discussions with Botha and trained harder for the second match that starts on Sunday.
'Ultimately as a coach you can do a lot by talking to a person, working with him technically, but he needs to pick up experience — which goes for everyone. You learn as you play. For him, it's about getting a lot more four-day and five-day cricket under the belt, and then he will improve.
'As he goes through different experiences he will also work things out for himself and we can talk through things. It's about that exposure, making sure he learns as he goes and making sure he picks up his confidence as he goes,' said Botha.
Maphaka lacked rhythm in both innings, the result of a lack of match time this year. It's not as simple as picking him for every match either. Last season, his provincial side, the Central Gauteng Lions, were deliberately cautious because he was completing his matric exams.
THE GRADUATES 🎓🏏🇿🇦
From schoolyard dreams to the Test arena! Kwena Maphaka and Lhuan-dre Pretorius reflect on a journey they started back in primary school and now rocking the Proteas colours💪
This is brotherhood. This is legacy. This is what dreams are made of 👏
🎥Watch… pic.twitter.com/krFmKhKW0b
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) June 26, 2025
He played in seven T20 Challenge matches, but just one first-class game.
The problem arises when he is out of South Africa, as was the case with the IPL, where he featured twice for the Rajasthan Royals.
There Maphaka needs to balance the demands of the franchise, with his own growth and it can be difficult for a young player especially, in an environment which is as intense as the IPL.
Playing more first-class matches can be difficult too, especially in South Africa. Numerous coaches, including Shukri Conrad, have criticised a schedule which last season saw provincial teams play only seven matches in the Four-Day Series.
Cricket SA has tried to supplement that by organising more SA A tours and it was for SA A that Maphaka made his first class debut in Sri Lanka two years ago.
One of the most important lessons is consistency, said Botha, who used the adage of hitting the top of off stump as a part of his bowling that Maphaka needs to improve.
'Kwena, because he has pace and you're playing on good wickets generally in Test cricket, if you get it slightly wrong the batters will get on top of you. He understands that, we've spoken about it and worked out some training methods for him.
'It's basically about getting your body conditioned for bowling that disciplined line and length for long periods. And to do that you need to play a lot of cricket.'
Maphaka continues to have the management's support and with Lungi Ngidi no longer needed for the second Test, will continue to lead the attack at the Queens Sports Club.
Having watched teammate Codi Yusuf claim six wickets in the first match and Corbin Bosch picking up a second innings five-for, Maphaka has no shortage of motivation to draw on.
'It's about him getting his mind in tune to practise well and bowl quickly,' Botha said of his young charge.
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Daily Maverick
14 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
SA look to Kwena Maphaka to turn aggression into wickets against Zimbabwe
South Africa's seam attack looks to remain unchanged as young Kwena Maphaka aims for his first wicket on tour. South Africa unloaded a barrage of inexperienced players at Zimbabwe in the first Test in Bulawayo this past week, and while most had matches to remember, young left-arm quick Kwena Maphaka did not. Corbin Bosch, in his second Test, scored a hundred and picked up a five-wicket haul. The debutant trio of Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who scored a big century, Dewald Brevis, who struck a half-century and picked up his maiden Test wicket, and Codi Yusuf — who cumulatively collected six wickets in total — all had outstanding maiden showings. advertisement Don't want to see this? Remove ads Only Maphaka, of the inexperienced bunch, had a match in which he didn't tick off a milestone. Maphaka bowled 22 overs across both innings, conceded 80 runs and picked up no wickets. The young left-arm quick was aggressive, knocking a few Zimbabwe batters on the head with the red cherry, including forcing opener Brian Bennett to be substituted after a rising bouncer struck him on the helmet. In that regard, he did the job he was asked to do, but the wickets column didn't reward his efforts, which were relentless but oftentimes wayward. 'Sometimes someone doesn't get wickets, it doesn't mean he didn't contribute,' Proteas bowling coach Piet Botha said. 'One of the messages was that he needs to be aggressive. I thought he was really aggressive. He did a good role in that respect.' Lack of red-ball experience The 19-year-old has only played five first-class matches, two of which have come in the form of Test matches for his country. Conversely, Maphaka has already played 50 professional white-ball matches — either 50- or 20-over matches. advertisement Don't want to see this? Remove ads His lack of red-ball experience was evident in his ploy to take wickets, especially in the second innings: bouncers, yorkers and slower balls. While those are often supremely effective in limited-overs cricket, where batters are looking to score quickly, it's not as potent in Test cricket as batters are happy to just see those deliveries out. The rapid speed with which Maphaka is capable of delivering the ball, while intimidating for batters, can also be to his detriment when the bowling mechanics aren't aligned perfectly. His economy rate in the first innings was 4.33, more than any other South African bowler. 'Because he's got the pace and you're playing on good wickets generally in Test cricket, if you get it slightly wrong, the batters will be on top of you,' Botha said. 'We've spoken about it. We've worked out some training methods for him. It's basically just getting your body conditioned to bowling that disciplined line and length for long periods. 'You need to play a lot of cricket to get to that, and also from a practise point of view, we need to pay attention to small things like that when we practise. advertisement Don't want to see this? Remove ads 'That's also been discussed with him and that's part of our progress plan for Kwena.' advertisement Don't want to see this? Remove ads Gaining experience South Africa come up against Zimbabwe in the second Test that starts on Sunday, and Maphaka is set to feature again after senior bowler Lungi Ngidi — who was set to travel to Bulawayo for the second match — was released from the squad and remained in South Africa. According to Botha, Maphaka needs to gain red-ball experience to improve. South Africa's next Test match is only in November, against India, and the domestic season also only starts in the summer. There are 15 international white-ball matches scheduled before then. When Maphaka will hone his red-ball skills with the influx of limited-overs matches is uncertain. Apart from Ngidi, there is also the matter of Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen returning to the side, which will make regular game time for the youngster difficult to find. 'As a coach, you can do a lot in terms of talking to a person, working with him technically — but he needs to pick up experience,' Botha said. 'That's the most important for all of us who've played cricket. You learn as you play. For him, it's just about getting a lot more four-day cricket and five-day cricket under the belt, and then he'll improve. 'As he's in the environment, as he goes through his experiences, he'll also work things out for himself. advertisement Don't want to see this? Remove ads 'We can talk through things… but it's all about that exposure and making sure that he learns as he goes and he picks up his confidence as he goes.' DM advertisement Don't want to see this? Remove ads The second Test between South Africa and Zimbabwe gets under way from Sunday at 10am.
TimesLIVE
18 hours ago
- TimesLIVE
Patience and more match time will see Proteas bowler Kwena Maphaka fulfil his potential
Kwena Maphaka finished matric last year, but cricket's school of hard knocks provided more lessons for the 19-year-old in the first Test in Bulawayo that will demand he shows patience but also puts in even more work. The trouble with doing the latter is the sport's jam-packed schedule which, for a new fast bowling talent, means that in 2025 the route to the top of the game involves a very different journey than it did for a teenage fast bowler starting a career in 2005. Maphaka played in just his fifth first-class match last week. It was also his second Test and his 13th match this year, of which 11 were T20s. 'He's involved worldwide in leagues and plays a lot of T20 cricket, so when it comes to Test cricket it involves a different way of approaching your bowling,' Proteas bowling coach Piet Botha said on Friday. Our Proteas Men are back on the grind and putting in the hard yards ahead of the 2nd Test against Zimbabwe 💪🏏 Fired up to seal a 2-0 series victory in Bulawayo! 👊🇿🇦 #WozaNawe — Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) July 3, 2025 Maphaka had an inauspicious outing in the first Test conceding 80 runs in 22 overs across the two Zimbabwean innings and finishing the match wicketless. In an otherwise excellent outing for an inexperienced Proteas attack, Maphaka was disappointing and Botha admitted the young bowler was down in the dumps. More importantly however, Maphaka was also keen to take the lessons out of the first Test, and has been locked in discussions with Botha and trained harder for the second match that starts on Sunday. 'Ultimately as a coach you can do a lot by talking to a person, working with him technically, but he needs to pick up experience — which goes for everyone. You learn as you play. For him, it's about getting a lot more four-day and five-day cricket under the belt, and then he will improve. 'As he goes through different experiences he will also work things out for himself and we can talk through things. It's about that exposure, making sure he learns as he goes and making sure he picks up his confidence as he goes,' said Botha. Maphaka lacked rhythm in both innings, the result of a lack of match time this year. It's not as simple as picking him for every match either. Last season, his provincial side, the Central Gauteng Lions, were deliberately cautious because he was completing his matric exams. THE GRADUATES 🎓🏏🇿🇦 From schoolyard dreams to the Test arena! Kwena Maphaka and Lhuan-dre Pretorius reflect on a journey they started back in primary school and now rocking the Proteas colours💪 This is brotherhood. This is legacy. This is what dreams are made of 👏 🎥Watch… — Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) June 26, 2025 He played in seven T20 Challenge matches, but just one first-class game. The problem arises when he is out of South Africa, as was the case with the IPL, where he featured twice for the Rajasthan Royals. There Maphaka needs to balance the demands of the franchise, with his own growth and it can be difficult for a young player especially, in an environment which is as intense as the IPL. Playing more first-class matches can be difficult too, especially in South Africa. Numerous coaches, including Shukri Conrad, have criticised a schedule which last season saw provincial teams play only seven matches in the Four-Day Series. Cricket SA has tried to supplement that by organising more SA A tours and it was for SA A that Maphaka made his first class debut in Sri Lanka two years ago. One of the most important lessons is consistency, said Botha, who used the adage of hitting the top of off stump as a part of his bowling that Maphaka needs to improve. 'Kwena, because he has pace and you're playing on good wickets generally in Test cricket, if you get it slightly wrong the batters will get on top of you. He understands that, we've spoken about it and worked out some training methods for him. 'It's basically about getting your body conditioned for bowling that disciplined line and length for long periods. And to do that you need to play a lot of cricket.' Maphaka continues to have the management's support and with Lungi Ngidi no longer needed for the second Test, will continue to lead the attack at the Queens Sports Club. Having watched teammate Codi Yusuf claim six wickets in the first match and Corbin Bosch picking up a second innings five-for, Maphaka has no shortage of motivation to draw on. 'It's about him getting his mind in tune to practise well and bowl quickly,' Botha said of his young charge.
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