You might have heard that you can find an Indian in each corner of the world. There are so many Indians that they keep migrating to other countries for various reasons and one of the countries is South Africa. Many people from India have migrated to South Africa and settled there. Some of these have gone on to become cricketers and played as a South African.
We have seen many Indian-origin cricketers play from West Indies, England, and even New Zealand but there are quite a few who have represented South Africa at the international level. It might be an odd feeling to play against a country from where your family belongs but most of these have been born and bought up in South Africa, so it wouldn’t matter much. So, let’s have a look at the five Indian-origin cricketers who played for South Africa at the international level.
5. Yusuf Abdulla
Yusuf Abdulla has not only played for South Africa, but he even played in the IPL as a South African. Abdulla’s mother is from Surat, Gujarat which makes his origin Indian, but he was born and bought in a small suburb in South Africa. Abdulla who has retired from the game was a left-arm fast bowler who went on to play for South Africa in the shortest format.
Abdulla played only a couple of T20Is in which he picked up two wickets, but he was never picked again for the Proteas. He played in the IPL for Kings XI Punjab for a couple of seasons but then wasn’t picked again. Abdulla was more of a T20 specialist and hence didn’t make it into the Test team.
4. Gulam Bodi
Gulam Bodi is a South African cricketer who was involved in a match-fixing controversy. Bodi was a left-handed batsman and used to bowl wrist-spin. Bodi was born in Surat, Gujarat, and went to South Africa to complete his education. The left-handed batsman represented South Africa in the white-ball formats.
Bodi has played 2 ODIs and one T20I, and he scored a fifty on his ODI debut. Recently, Bodi was caught in a match-fixing scandal, as a result, he has been sentenced to five years of jail on charges of corruption.
3. Senuran Muthusamy
Senuran Muthusamy made his debut for Proteas a couple of years ago. Interestingly he made his debut against India in the three-match Test series in 2018. Muthusamy who is a left-arm orthodox spinner was born and bought up in South Africa, but his origins are from India.
His family migrated to South Africa long ago and since then they are living in South Africa. The left-arm spinner played two Tests in which he picked up two wickets and scored 98 runs with a highest of 49.
2. Keshav Maharaj
Keshav Maharaj as the name suggests has an Indian origin, but he was born and bought up in the Rainbow Nation. The left-arm spinner from Durban made his Test debut in 2016 against Australia and has become their main spinner in the longest format.
Maharaj has done well so far in his career as he has picked up 110 wickets in 32 matches but a lot more was expected of him on the India tour. The left-arm spinner has played 7 ODIs for Proteas but isn’t a certainty in the white-ball squad. Maharaj has the potential, and he will remain key for South Africa in the near future.
1. Hashim Amla
Hashim Amla is the most famous South African cricketer of Indian origin. Another South African player whose origins are based in Surat, Gujarat, but he was born and bought up in the country which he represented at the highest level. Amla has been a great cricketer and his record speaks volumes about him.
He has played over 100 Tests with more than 9000 runs and 181 ODIs with more than 8000 runs. Amla announced his retirement from the game recently, but it was a joy to watch a player like Hashim Amla who was a natural stroke-maker of the highest quality.
