Kyle Verreynne

A schoolboy hockey player, Kyle Verreynne is a wristy batter and agile wicket-keeper, whose sporting journey began at one of the best schools in South Africa. He is a product of Wynberg Boys, best-known for its alumnus Jacques Kallis and excelled in various sporting codes. At 16, Verreynne broke his hand on the hockey field and feared his career would never get going. He had to have four metal plates inserted to help it heal, and missed out on selection for the schools' side but then gave up hockey to concentrate on cricket.

Verreynne was part of South Africa's 2016 Under-19 World Cup squad and finished as their second-highest run-scorer and began to get noticed for his batting numbers. He averaged over 50 in first-class cricket for five out of five seasons between 2016-17 and 2020-21 summer and was the second-highest run-scorer in the 2019 franchise one-day cup and international recognition followed soon after.

Verreynne made his ODI debut in February 2020 and played 12 matches but struggled to hold down a regular place in that squad. Instead, he has nailed down a spot in the Test team, after first playing in 2021. In his sixth Test, he scored a statement century - a second-innings unbeaten136* - as South Africa levelled a series in New Zealand. Although seen as a red-ball player, Verreynne attracted some interested at T20 level and signed for the Joburg Super Kings for inaugural season of the SA20 and Pretoria Capitals for season 2, where he was their highest run-scorer and notched up the competition's highest score - 116*.