South Africa’s former player Jacques Kallis believes that the Indian Premier League (IPL) has played a huge role in shaping the future of T20 cricket not only in India but also in South Africa.
In a recent interaction with the Indian media during the SA20 felicitation ceremony, Kallis spoke about how Graeme Smith has used the IPL as an inspirational model to build the SA20 league.
Kallis explained, “I think Graeme Smith learnt a lot from the IPL after spending so much time with those guys and wanted to stage a league as close to the IPL as possible. The IPL, by far, is the best league in the world, and Graeme’s vision from the start was to get as close to that standard and make this the second-strongest league. I think he’s very close.”
He said that SA20 is respected by both players and fans. According to him, “The players respect the league, they enjoy it, and the crowds are coming in, which shows it’s a good product. The owners are present and investing in it because they see it as a strong opportunity. So yes, the two leagues have worked really well together, forming a formidable bond, and players want to be part of it.”
Kallis, who himself played for two different franchises in the IPL, said, “When the best players in the world put their hands up to play whenever they’re available, it shows how far this league has come and how much good work has gone into turning it into one of the top competitions.”
Kallis then praised SA20 for helping young players grow. He said, “I think what the IPL did for Indian cricket, we were hoping that a similar tournament would take off in South Africa a lot earlier… These young guys are playing under good coaches, playing with some world-class players, learning and feeding off them… that can only bode well for South African cricket.”
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