In the second part of an exclusive interview, Proteas bowler Anrich Nortje talks about his special bond with Kagiso Rabada in the Delhi Capitals team, writes ANDRE HUISAMEN.
Nortje and Rabada have been firing on all cylinders for the Capitals outfit in this year’s IPL, contributing a total of 19 wickets in the five matches they have played this campaign.
The pair has been complementing each other well and have each had decisive roles to play at critical stages of the encounters.
READ: Nortje full of praise for Ponting
The Capitals sit on top of the IPL standings heading into their clash with the Rajasthan Royals on Friday and according to Nortje it has been nice to have a familiar face in the dressing room for his first IPL experience.
‘Obviously it’s nice to have someone from South African with you in the team. Someone that understands a bit of Afrikaans but in general it is awesome to share the field with him [Rabada] in the IPL.
‘Luckily we have both been starting together, which is quite enjoyable. We talk quite a lot about the game and we also talk about everything but the game so I try get as much ideas from him as possible – just chatting about how he sees and experiences things, it is helping me quite a lot to have a clearer mindset about what I want to do on the pitch.
‘KG is still fairly young but he has a lot of experience and the way he plays the game is a bit different to how I prepare, so it’s just nice to try and learn from him. He has been doing really in the IPL so far,’ said Nortje.
Rabada is currently leading the way in the wickets charts and is proudly wearing the purple cap at the moment for the most wickets in the competition so far with 12.
The competition is close to reaching the halfway mark of matches played and Nortje is well aware that the job and Capitals’ quest to win their first IPL crown is by no means done, citing there is still a lot of work left for him and Rabada and the rest of the team to do.
ALSO READ: CSA announces domestic fixtures
‘Hopefully we can continue with our good form but obviously things won’t stay the same all the time so hopefully we can perform well again in the next couple of games but it is still a long way to go,’ added the 26-year-old.
Having established himself within the Proteas ranks last season, Nortje is hoping his future partnership with Rabada, across all formats can lead to bigger growth for himself.
‘I also believe it will help in the future for us to be working together. It is something that I can take quite a lot from for when we are playing together again for the Proteas. I think I’m learning constantly from just being in the IPL and it is a good learning curve so I’m trying to take as much from it as possible.
‘Everyone involved with the IPL can learn so much from the experience, the people and the coaches. I think every single person can take something from the whole experience,’ Nortje concluded.
