Who are the ‘Kolpak Kids’ in the Ram Slam T20?

A more celebrity-packed Ram Slam T20 kicks off on Friday evening with a battle between the Warriors and Knights under St George’s Park’s brand new lights.

The presence of all the Proteas means this season’s tournament is bigger in stature but another interesting sub-plot is that quite a few domestic stalwarts are now playing as so-called Kolpak players in this campaign.

Ironically, the Warriors are one of the franchises with the most of them present.

Will their experience make this tournament even more competitive or will the cricket public be reminded of how they’re not available for South Africa anymore?

Here are the “Kolpak Kids” on show.

Colin Ingram (Warriors)

Seven years ago, the Proteas thought they’d unearthed a man destined for great things.

The then 25-year-old Ingram had struck two centuries in his first four ODI innings and had tongues wagging.

But inconsistency proved his undoing and played his last international match in 2013.

Ironically, the national selectors’ impatience came probably too soon because Ingram has matured immensely.

He’s now truly a classy, dominating presence in franchise cricket but it seems his past failures counted for too much.

Now he’s just reminding everyone what could’ve been.

Simon Harmer (Warriors)

Simon Harmer. Photo: Anesh Debiky/Gallo Images.

The tall off-spinner has become a bit of a black sheep among some stakeholders for his outspoken views on “fair” transformation.

It certainly hasn’t helped that his first season of English county cricket delivered a massive 72 wickets for Essex.

That said, the 28-year-old Harmer now seems content that he probably won’t add to his five Tests and only wants to continue being such a fine franchise player.

With the Warriors only allowed to pick two Kolpak players in every XI, he might not get a game every time.

Marchant de Lange (Knights)

Marchant de Lange. Photo: Richard Huggard/Gallo Images.

The javelin prodigy took international cricket by storm five years ago with his short run-up and raw pace but injuries have done much damage to the continuity of his career.

When he managed to get Kolpak clearance based on his wife’s British passport, De Lange made it clear he sees no future in South Africa.

The Knights employ him as an overseas player and he’ll definitely add value, especially if he can keep on harassing batters with his pace.

Dane Vilas (Dolphins)

Dane Vilas. Photo: Michael Sheehan/Gallo Images.

Vilas is arguably the Kolpak signing of the season.

Dynamic and versatile, the 32-year-old has an excellent record in domestic cricket and is known for his ability to adapt his batting according to a specific match context.

He’s also more than a competent wicketkeeper and has a strong personality.

Had it not been for a certain gifted Quinton de Kock, Vilas might not have chosen the English route.

Hardus Viljoen (Highveld Lions)

Hardus Viljoen. Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images.

You’d struggle to find a more frightening bowler on the domestic circuit.

The strapping Viljoen loves the bouncy pitches of South Africa and has consistently been one of the biggest wicket-takers in the country.

Yet he does have his limitations in terms of variation and decided earlier this year to go to Derbyshire, no doubt also influenced a bit by the rise of Kagiso Rabada.

But he’ll certainly enjoy bowling with him in this series.

Colin Ackermann (Warriors)

Colin Ackermann. Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images.

Much like Vilas, the 26-year-old from George is a classy, reliable performer.

He’s got a reputation for standing his ground when the going gets tough but can also hit the ball a mile.

Add his useful off-spinners into the mix and you have a very valuable franchise cricketer.

It won’t be a surprise to see him play for the Netherlands soon.

Other notable names: Rory Kleinveldt (Cape Cobras – injured), Stiaan van Zyl (Cape Cobras – out of favour).

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