IPL 2019: 3 South African pacers to watch out for

The 12th edition of India's top T20 league, IPL 2019, is less than 3 weeks away. The first match will be played between the defending champions Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore on March 23rd at M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

The IPL is a big platform for Indian and overseas players to exhibit their talent. That said, there haven't been a lot of players from South Africa making an impact except AB de Villiers, who has continuously delivered with the bat all the seasons, and Morne Morkel, who won the Purple Cap in 2012 with 25 wickets from 16 matches.

South Africa have one of the best pace bowling attacks in the world. But not often have we seen a South African bowler dominating the IPL.

This year, two South African bowlers are making their IPL debut - Hardus Viljoen and Anrich Nortje. The big names who went unsold in the auction this year are Dale Steyn and More Morkel.

On that note, let's take a look at 3 South African pacers to watch out for in this edition of IPL.

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#3 Anrich Nortje (Kolkata Knight Riders)

Nortje constantly bowls at 150 Kmph

The 25-year-old Anrich Nortje is a right arm pace bowler. He came into the IPL auction with a base price of INR 20 lakh and Kolkata Knight Riders bought him at that price.

In the Mzansi Super League (MSL), Nortje took 8 wickets from 3 matches at an average of 10.4 including the wickets of Aiden Markram, Farhaan Behardien, Hashim Amla and Temba Bavuma. But he was ruled out from the rest of the tournament due to an ankle injury.

Nortje has picked up 162 wickets from 47 first-class matches at an average of 25.72. He has also tkane 19 wickets from 12 T20s.

He made his ODI debut in 2019 March against Sri Lanka. Even though he could bag only one wicket, he caught everyone’s eye with his pace and variation.

Nortje is known for attacking the stumps at 150 kph. It will be interesting to see how he performs in Indian conditions.

#2 Lungi Ngidi (Chennai Super Kings)

Ngidi has 11 IPL wickets in 7 matches

The 22-year-old Lungi Ngidi is one of South Africa's most promising prospects. In the 2018 South African Cricket Awards, he was named as one of the five Cricketers of the Year.

He made his T20I debut against Sri Lanka in 2017 and was awarded the Man of the Match on debut. A year later he made his Test debut against India and was awarded Man of the Match on Test debut too.

Ngidi has picked up 15 Test wickets in 4 matches and 26 ODI wickets in 13 matches. He usually bowls around 140 kph.

Ngidi made his IPL debut in 2018 for Chennai Super Kings, after Chennai bought him for INR 50 lakh. He picked 11 wickets from 7 matches in that season.

Ngidi is expected to be the lead bowler for CSK this year. He will be hoping to continue his good form in this edition of IPL too.

#1 Kagiso Rabada (Delhi Capitals)

Rabada will lead the attack with Boult for Delhi Capitals

Kagiso Rabada, the 23-year-old pace sensation, is a permanent member of the South African squad across all formats. He topped the ICC Test and ODI bowlers' charts in Jan 2018, and also became the youngest bowler to pick 150 Test wickets at the age of 23.

In 2018, Rabada took the most wickets in Tests, with 52 dismissals. He also became only the second player to take a hat-trick on ODI debut.

So far, Rabada has picked 176 Test wickets from 37 matches and 98 ODI wickets from 62 matches. He constantly hits the mid-140s with the ball and he is known for his raw pace.

Rabada made his IPL debut in 2017 for the Delhi Daredevils. But he had a mediocre first season with just 6 wickets in 6 matches. He didn’t participate in IPL 2018 due to an injury.

Delhi Capitals would expect him to bounce back in this season. He will lead the bowling attack along with Trent Boult, and there is no doubt that this pair is going to be a nightmare for any batting lineup.