PRETORIUS EMPHASISES "TEAM CHEMISTRY" AS PAARL ROYALS HEAD TO AUCTION

Betway SA20 rising star Lhuan-dre Pretorius is looking forward to the compilation of the Paarl Royals squad at Tuesday’s much-anticipated Season 4 Player Auction in Johannesburg.

The 19-year-old will not be part of the auction proceedings after being pre-signed on the back of topping the competition’s run-scorer's charts in his debut Betway SA20 season.

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The teenager plundered 397 runs at a strike-rate of 166.81.

The newly-capped Proteas international’s development was accelerated by playing alongside Joe Root, but will have to find his own way in Season 4 with the England legend not returning due to Ashes international commitments.

He will though still be able to lean on the experience of his captain David Miller.

“I know Joe Root's not back, but I will definitely try to add value where I can and definitely try to replicate what I did last season with the bat and hopefully do a bit more than that with my skills,” Pretorius told Betway SA20.

“Captain Dave, he has a lot of experience, a lot of T20 experience, so his experience will also be great.”

The Boland Park-based side’s theme song is not “Gees like Royals”  for no reason with a great emphasis placed on team spirit and camaraderie and Pretorius feels that this will once again be key after the squad is pieced together at the auction.

“Team chemistry is really important in such small tournaments, especially when it's not going well,”he said.

“The team has to be really close and tight in the changeroom and off the field to be able to get out of that tough period on the field. 

“If it's going well, team chemistry doesn't really matter, but especially when it goes tough, then team chemistry really needs to be close to get out of the dark space.”

Overall, Pretorius is looking forward to not falling foul of the “Season 2 syndrome” by seeking out fellow youthful prodigy Dewald Brevis as he hopes to put on another dazzling show in South Africa’s premier domestic cricket competition.

“I'll definitely not change much in my T20 game,” he said. “I’ve spoken a bit to Brevis and stuff, but really try and be myself, be true to myself and try and replicate, like I said earlier, what I did in the previous season. 

“That's just playing my normal game: Attacking, free-flowing. I like to take on bowlers, play without fear of failure and just enjoy myself. 

“I'm really looking forward to SA20. It's one of my favourites. I haven't played a lot, but it's one of my favourite times of the year, the SA20 playing against all the South African teammates and domestic teammates in front of home crowds, full crowds. It's a great time!”