"He'll add hell lot of value to any team...": Kallis on Simon Harmer's SA20 prospects following breakthrough India tour

New Delhi [India], December 3 (ANI): Legendary South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis expressed happiness with spinner Simon Harmer's series-sealing performances against India, saying that if picked during the SA20 season four auction, he is going to "add hell lot of value" to the team which gets him.

As part of the build-up to SA20 Season 4, Kallis shared exclusive insights on team combinations, standout performers, and key narratives shaping the upcoming season during a special interaction with Indian media, facilitated by SA20. Harmer went unsold during the auction, but with a standout performance in South Africa's first series win in India after 25 years, the veteran spinner could be an extremely reliable replacement should the need arise for any franchise to get one.

"He is a very experienced player. You know, he has been around for a long time. He has done well in county cricket and now he has done really well for South Africa. For any team to have him, he is going to add a hell lot of value. He adds a bit of value with the bat as well, not only with the ball. So his experience will be invaluable and, you know, I am sure he will play a massive role for the team, and they will rely on his experience, whether it is on the field or off the field. He has really come through and started performing at a really good time, you know, for him personally, especially with all these big tournaments coming up now," Kallis said.

A one-time winner of the SA20 title with Sunrisers Eastern Cape, Harmer has played 24 matches in SA20 for SEC and Durban Super Giants (DSG), having picked up nine wickets.

Having played 14 Tests with SA since his international debut in 2015, Harmer has taken 69 wickets at an average of 21.69, with best figures of 6/37. This year in four Tests, he has taken 30 wickets at an average of 14.30, with best figures of 6/37, and both of his career Test five-wicket hauls coming this year.

The 36-year-old spinner has taken 1,017 wickets in 236 first-class matches at an average of 26.05, with best figures of 9/80, with 59 career fifers and 14 ten-fors. He is the second-highest wicket-taker of all time for Essex and is a legend in the England county cricket circuit, having taken 513 wickets in 116 matches at an average of 23.09, with best figures of 9/80, with 35 five-fors and ten ten-wicket hauls to his name.

After Proteas' whitewash of India, Harmer scripted history, overtaking pace legend Dale Steyn to become his country's leading wicket-taker in Test cricket in India. The Proteas off-spinner surpassed legendary speedster Dale Steyn's 26-wicket tally, making him the most successful bowler in Tests in India for SA. In four matches, Harmer is the standout performer for the Proteas in Tests in India. The off-spinner picked up 27 wickets at an outstanding average of 15.03 and a strike rate of 36.1. Out of 109 bowlers who have a minimum of 20 Test wickets in India, Harmer has the best average and strike-rate.

In two Tests during the recent tour to India, Harmer ended as the leading wicket-taker, with 17 wickets at an average of 8.94, two four-wicket hauls and a six-wicket haul to his name.

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