Photo Credit: SA20 League
Mitchell van Buuren is hoping the time spent at Paarl Royals over the past two seasons during the Betway SA20 will stand him in good stead for the forthcoming domestic season.
Van Buuren has been handed the vice-captaincy of the Lions for the 2024-25 season and will assume the leadership reins when the CSA T20 Domestic Challenge gets underway later this month.
Fellow Royals teammate Bjorn Fortuin is the official Lions captain, but the left-arm spinner is away on national duty with the Proteas in the UAE.
Van Buuren, 26, feels that sharing a dressing room at Boland Park with experienced internationals such Royals captain David Miller and England white-ball captain Jos Buttler has been invaluable in shaping his leadership credentials.
“It has helped me immensely. I was fortunate to play with Jos Buttler and David Miller, [at Paarl Royals] who are leaders and I learnt a lot from them. I had a few chats with David last season about leadership. Being in that environment has taken my game to the next level,” Van Buuren said at the Wanderers.
The stylish middle-order batter has extensive leadership experience, having led King Edward High School (KES) First XI, South Africa U19 and the SA Emerging XI, and knows that personal performance plays a great role in becoming a successful captain.
“It’s nothing new to me,” said Van Buuren. “For me it’s about leading by example. I’ve got to keep letting the bat do the talking. I can always score more runs, which is something I want to do this season. I’m as hungry as ever and I’ll be looking to put as many runs as possible on the board.
“I’m not a vocal guy, so I’ll lead by my actions. I want to win games for my team with the bat and make the best decisions possible when I’m leading.”
MITCHELL VAN BUUREN SA20 STATS
Matches: 16 | Runs: 253 | HS: 72* | Ave: 25.30 | Strike-rate: 119.33
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SA20, officially known as the Betway SA20 for sponsorship reasons, is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament in South Africa organized by Cricket South Africa (CSA). First held in the 2023 season, the league features six city-based teams. Sunrisers Eastern Cape won the first two editions of the tournament.
