Heinrich Klaasen was named player of the match in MI vs SRH for his unbeaten knock of 65 runs. Image Credit: ANI
IPL 2026: Heinrich Klaasen has found incredible consistency in the ongoing 19th season of the Indian Premier League. The wicketkeeper batter playing for SunRisers Hyderabad has been dismissed only once for a score of less than 30, against the Rajasthan Royals, when he was dismissed for 29. Having retired from international cricket, there were doubts about how the South African batter would perform. However, with his consistency across the season, Klaasen has shut all his doubters and is currently placed second on the Orange Cap leaderboard. He was named the player of the match for playing an unbeaten knock of 65 runs against the Mumbai Indians yesterday. Reacting to his heroics, Kevin Pietersen took to Twitter and urged Cricket South Africa (CSA) to recall Klaasen ahead of the 2027 ODI World Cup.
Thanks to his budding career as a YouTuber, Kevin Pietersen has been fairly active on social media platforms. The former English cricketer has been known to speak his mind freely, even if it raises issues. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Pietersen urged CSA to call Heinrich Klaasen and ask him to reverse his retirement from international cricket. The former English cricketer talked about how the Proteas have never won a World Cup, and with a home ODI World Cup approaching in 2027, they should get Klaasen back playing for the Rainbow Nation. In his tweet, Pietersen said, “South Africa have never won a cricket World Cup! There should be a phone call this morning, from the South African cricket board, to Heinrich Klaasen, to ask him if he can rejoin international cricket and be a central figure in their campaign to try and win their first ever World Cup, which will be in South Africa next year.”
Heinrich Klaasen took retirement from international cricket on the 2nd of June, 2025. His decision to retire from playing for South Africa came to free up his schedule and be available for T20 leagues around the world. He represented South Africa in 122 games, which included only four tests. In these games, Klaasen scored 3,245 runs at an average of 32.45 with a strike rate of 117.40. His best came in the shortest format, where the 34-year-old scored 1000 runs at 23.25 while striking at beyond 140 in 58 T20Is.
Heinrich Klaasen has been in top form for Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026. He showcased his brilliance in Wankhede Stadium against the Mumbai Indians with a match-winning knock of 65 runs that sealed SRH’s fifth win on the trot. Klaasen was named the player of the match for his unbeaten knock as the Orange Army chased down MI’s 243.
The right-handed batter has unarguably been the most consistent batter in the ongoing season. He currently ranks second on the Orange Cap leaderboard, behind SRH teammate Abhishek Sharma. Klaasen has scored 414 runs in nine innings, averaging 59.14. His strike rate, which became a talking point in earlier games, has now gone up to 157.41. While it is still not as high as expected from someone of the calibre of Klaasen or the scoring trends this season, he has been a major contributor in SRH’s current five-match winning streak.
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