Interview | ‘Calmer’ Tristan Luus absolutely ‘stoked’ after amazing season
By MI New York
2024 – Tristan Luus comes into the South Africa under-19 World Cup squad as an injury replacement
2025 – Tristan Luus can boast of a winner’s medal in the SA20 and the MLC
He’s quick. He’s nippy. He’s barely 20.
“This last year has been a rollercoaster of a year. It started with the SA20 and me winning the SA20 as a rookie was an unbelievable way to start the year. I’m glad I made my debut for both MI Cape Town and MI New York. Winning the MLC then was like a dream coming through. My cricket is in a really good space right now,” he said in an exclusive chat with minycricket.com.
At MI New York, he was on a mission. Having been drafted into the XI with the team in a must-win situation, Tristan had his task cut out. And he couldn’t wait.
“I was more excited than nervous (at MI New York), I’ll be honest. I couldn’t wait. I was just in the corner and I was like, ‘I wanna play, I just wanna play’. The day I got to know I was going to play, I was super stoked. I was so excited to play. Thank goodness the coaches saw I could do something in this team.,” he said.
And the rewards on the investment were instantaneous. Against Texas Super Kings in the all-important second Qualifier, he ripped through their batting order in a spell of 3/35, which included the wicket of his fellow country great, Faf du Plessis.
“There was a lot of planning going into that game,” he said. “We knew it was a must-win game. I was really focused on that game. Emotionally I was locked in. I really played well and I was grateful to just contribute to the team and get wickets.”
At 20, every conversation, every interaction, every match is a learning. And with the likes of Nicholas Pooran, Kieron Pollard, Trent Boult, Quinton de Kock to rub shoulders with right in the middle of all the action (must-win territory, mind you!), trust it to be a steep education in the youngster’s cricketing journey.
“Every game I played under games like Boulty or Nicky P or Pollard, with players who are legends of the game, I almost feel calmer in match situations. They talk to me when something is going on. What I learnt in that game wasn’t necessarily skill wise, it was being calm in certain situations of the game. Just advice like, ‘you are only one good ball away’. I think I control my emotions a lot better because the guys around me helped me with it.”
Tristan, we’ve loved every moment of you in the Blue and Gold.
