When Anrich Nortje showed up for his news conference on Tuesday at the city’s Ekana Stadium, he wasn’t a member of the LSG. Less than ten minutes later, he was getting up to go. He joked, “I’ll see you guys soon, then,” as he made his way out to a room full of reporters, including some local ones.
It’s over 13 times less than the USD 2.8 million the Kolkata Knight Riders paid for Cameron Green, but more than twice as much as the Mumbai Indians paid for Quinton de Kock.
Is Anrich Nortje really more than twice as good a cricket player as De Kock? Is a single Green worth almost 25 De Kocks or around 13 Anrich Nortje or Hasarangas?
LSG paid USD 220,000 for Nortje, which is the same amount they paid for Wanindu Hasaranga.
It’s not that easy. The amount that owners spend depends on their remaining funds, the strength of their team, and their overall strategy for winning the IPL, which varies from franchise to franchise.
Anrich Nortje danger of harm must also be taken into account. Due to a back issue, he was only able to participate in two of KKR’s games during the previous year’s competition. This year, he has only made 13 appearances overall. Fortunately, nine of them—Kazulu-Natal Coastal T20s—occurred in a span of 28 days in November.
He is now in good form and has soared to speeds of over 140 km/h in the two Twenty20 Internationals he has participated in during South Africa’s current tour of India. However, due to injuries and his decision to forego Tests, those remain his last international appearances in almost 17 months; he last played in that format in February 2023.
“It’s nice to be in the Proteas shirt again,” Anrich Nortje remarked. “I really missed it and I’ve really enjoyed my time here.”
His current form is still up for debate. In Dharamsala on Sunday, he took 0/14 in three overs after going wicketless for 41 in four overs in Cuttack the previous Tuesday.
“I just want to concentrate on each game and try to get better as much as I can. I have to be realistic, but I’m pleased with the development thus far.
In September 2020, Anrich Nortje made his IPL debut for the Delhi Capitals in Dubai. After six seasons, he has 48 of 89 caps for Delhi and Kolkata, despite playing 16 games that year. That is 53.93% of the total number of games those teams have played since Nortje entered the competition.
With South Africa, who have participated in 243 games since Nortje’s debut in an ODI match against Sri Lanka at the Wanderers in March 2019, the situation is even more trite. Only 85 of those games have seen him in the starting lineup. That amounts to 34.98%.
In his seven years as an international, Nortje has participated in more than half of South Africa’s games in a calendar year three times, reaching a high of 11 of 19 (57.89%) in 2020. However, he hasn’t reached the halfway point in three years.
Kagiso Rabada has made four appearances in more than half of South Africa’s games during Nortje’s career. With a peak of 86.96% (20 of 23) in 2019, that’s more than two-thirds in three of those years.
Prior to Nortje’s arrival, Rabada played in most of South Africa’s games three times during his five years as an international. 91.43% in 2016, 72.50% in 2017, and 76.47% in 2018 were landslides.
Compared to Nortje, Rabada’s body has shown him exponentially more kindness. How do you defend spending money on a player who has only been selected for half of the games you could anticipate him playing?
LSG has made that decision, in part because opposing batters find a fit and firing Nortje to be one of the most unsettling sights in the game. And not just because he has the biggest moustache in cricket.
His economy rate for the competition is a formidable 9.07, and he has never claimed more than three wickets in an IPL game. However, a month after turning thirty-two, he still makes a striking impression as he rushes in the direction of the crease. It is obvious that LSG thinks that athletic but frequently damaged body still has life left in it.
The home crowd will be far more interested in Nortje’s performance if he is chosen for the fourth Twenty20 International in Lucknow on Wednesday than they may have been prior to the auction. If he makes things difficult for the Indians, some of the locals could be thrilled. At any rate, quietly and carefully.
Anrich Nortje must survive the match on Wednesday and the last Twenty20 International in Ahmedabad on Friday. There are also three Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) at home against the West Indies from January 27 to February 1, the SA20 from December 26 to January 25, and the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.
There are still 101 days until the IPL begins on March 26. Many things could go wrong in that amount of time. but for a lot to go well as well. The latter is due to Nortje.
India
