Under-25 cricketers from prominent Test nations who could be the next big superstars in world cricket

South Africa – Kagiso Rabada

Kagiso Rabada took a hat-trick on his debut in international cricket – against Bangladesh last year

6/16 on international debut, including a hattrick made Kagiso Rabada the talking point in world cricket within the span of just 8 overs. The youngster went on to prove that such a haul with his first expedition with the white ball in international cricket wasn’t a fluke. 24 wickets from 6 Tests, 37 wickets from 20 ODIs and 22 wickets from 16 T20I have already established the 21-year-old as a permanent member of the South African team across formats.

More than his stats, however, it his fearless attitude and the ability to handle pressure at such a young age that has made him a sensation around the globe. Whether it was his game-defining last over against India in an ODI in Kanpur last year, wherein he defended 11 runs that were needed by India to win off the last over, against MS Dhoni, one of the better finishers in the history of limited-overs cricket, allowing the Indian captain to score just 4 runs off the first three balls before dismissing him off the fourth or the following year, when in a must-win encounter against South Africa, Rabada’s 4/45 helped South Africa bundle out England for 262, before Chris Morris’ heroics took them past the line with just one wicket in hand, the young South African has shown remarkable calmness under pressure.

Hence, the Proteas have found someone who thrives under pressure and has delivered in testing circumstances so far. They would hope that he continues to do the same.