MI CAPE TOWN'S TRISTAN LUUS JOINS MI NEW YORK

Betway SA20 Rising Star Tristan Luus is delighted to “get out of my comfort zone” after joining Major League Cricket’s MI New York.

Luus, 19, was part of MI Cape Town’s Betway SA20 Season 3 championship-winning squad last season.

The bespectacled fast bowler will join up fellow MI Cape Town stars Trent Boult, George Linde and Delano Potgieter at MI New York.

“Yes, I'm grateful,” Luus said. “MI is definitely the team you want to be involved in, like the set up and everything. So, I'm very grateful.

“I like to play in different conditions that I'm used to, like get out of my comfort zone.”

Luus will work under former MI Cape Town bowling coach and Sri Lankan fast bowling legend Lasith Malinga.

“I'm going to try and take in as much as possible, like death bowling, because he's one of the best death bowlers ever,” he said.

“So just like taking as much as possible, try to like put it into my game and see where my game can improve. I'm very excited to work with a bowling coach like that.”

Luus has been active throughout the South African winter and takes good form into the MLC.

He recently played for the South Africa ‘A’ side on their tour of the West Indies, featuring in one List A match and a “Test”.

Luus was particularly good in the red-ball match, claiming 4/86 in the West Indies’ A side’s second innings, to power the South Africa A side to victory.

The teenager was also the leading seam bowler in South Africa’s domestic 1-Day Competition, picking up 14 wickets at an average of 14.68, which helped his team, the Dolphins, take home the honours.

At the time, the former SA U19 fast bowler said that having been part of Betway SA20 was “the turning point of my career”.

“For me, that was a turning point in my career. I almost realised that I want this even more now. I want to experience this even more now,” he said.

“Behind the scenes, people only see the cricket part of it. It's unmatched. It's so professional and so inviting.”