WHEN a 17-year-old Kwena Maphaka took to the field for the first time in the blue colours of the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League earlier this year, there were a lot of expectations on the young fast-bowling prodigy.
With all the weight on his young shoulders, the left-arm paceman had a rather forgetful IPL debut as Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and Aiden Markram took him to the cleaners at a packed Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
Maphaka conceded five sixes and seven fours that night, and returned figures of 0/66 as the he endured a baptism of fire.
In his second and final game for captain Hardik Pandya’s Mumbai Indians, Maphaka had a much better performance, returning figures of 1/23 and letting the world know why such a decorated team put all their trust in him straight from the Under-19 World Cup.
“I probably watched that footage (the 0/66 bowling performance) four times, and I’m probably done watching it back now because I think I’ve gotten all the information that I got all the information that I can out of it,” Maphaka told the media at a SA20 briefing in Johannesburg this week.
Following that tough debut, many South African legends and some from around the world reckoned that the youngster could not recover from the amount of pressure that he was exposed to in Hyderabad.
However, the St Stithians College matric pupil told the media that he is not mentally scarred at all, and that he is mentally tough to have only recognised the experience as a learning curve.
“It’s definitely something that could happen to other cricketers, but I think I’m mentally strong enough to not let it scar me, and to work through it as a learning experience rather than a massacre.”
Many forget that the youngster had been exposed to pressure way before the IPL as he competed in the Division Two T20 Knockout competition when he had just turned 16.
He played in the SA Under-19 team and went on to win that tournament with his teammates, beating Eastern Cape Iinyathi in front of their home crowd at Buffalo Park in East London.
"Many more to come" 💯🤞
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) April 2, 2024
Kwena Maphaka shares his thoughts after his first home game at Wankhede 📹#MumbaiMeriJaan #MumbaiIndians pic.twitter.com/mEjiWCKbxj
“It was a very important tournament for an under-19 team going out and playing against Division Two teams. It doesn’t really seem that important, but the impact that it had on a lot of our careers has been significant,” said Maphaka.
“Being able to play in maybe not in the biggest crowds, but in East London, there was quite a big crowd and they were all against us.
𝟓𝟎 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐆𝐎‼️
Proteas legend AB de Villiers’ excitement for the #BetwaySA20 Season 3 opener between double champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape and MI Cape Town at St George’s Park on 9 January is reaching fever pitch.
Check it out 🔗 https://t.co/7ru5jFaxq7 pic.twitter.com/uu7B9yJ74U
“Being able to know what it feels like to be an underdog, know what it feels like not to have people on your side, that was really special and was definitely something we needed as a team.
“I hope that it continues because it is something that young cricketers need in general.”
The youngster is in line to get his SA20 debut for the Paarl Royals in the upcoming third edition of the tournament early next year.