The ICC T20 World Cup begins on October 16 in Australia with a match between Sri Lanka and Namibia. Keshav Maharaj has been named as a part of the 15-man squad of South Africa. The Proteas are on the lookout for their maiden World Cup triumph across formats. Against the backdrop of a 1-2 series defeat to India in a T20 series recently, South Africa is in dire need of top form and will require the services of in-form bowler Maharaj to the fullest.

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Who is Keshav Maharaj?

Keshav Atmanand Maharaj is a professional cricketer who represents South Africa in all three formats of international cricket. He is a left-arm orthodox spinner and a right-handed batter. He was born on February 7 1990 to the couple Atmanand and Kanchan Mala in Durban. His forefathers are said to have been from Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India, and went to South Africa as labourers in 1874.

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Keshav made his debut for South Africa in the first Test of South Africa’s tour of Australia on November 3, 2016. In June 2021, Maharaj became the first South African in 60 years and the second in history to claim a hat-trick in Test cricket after claiming the wicket of Kieron Powell, Jason Holder, and Joshua De-Silva in that order in the second Test match against West Indies. The only other South African to achieve a similar feat was Geoff Griffin when he claimed a hat-trick against England in Lords in 1960. 

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Having represented South Africa in a total of 85 international matches (43 Tests, 24 ODIs, and 18 T20s), Maharaj has claimed 194 wickets thus far (152 Tests, 27 ODIs, and 15 T20Is). He is currently the vice-captain of the South African side in limited overs cricket and last featured in a T20 match against India on October 2 in Dr Bhupen Hazarika stadium, Assam, India.