Knysna's blossoming Protea

KNYSNA NEWS - Being selected as part of the squad has arguably made Stubbs the first Knysnarian ever to don the Proteas jersey.

According to Cricket South Africa (CSA) statistician Andrew Samson, as far as they know Stubbs is the first player from Knysna to ever play for the South African national team.

Speaking about his selection, Stubbs said it is a dream come true. "Playing for your country is any cricketer's dream, and even though I've been selected it doesn't necessarily feel fulfilled yet, it feels like now is the time to do the job if I get given the chance to do so," he said. "I never thought it would happen this quickly, it's been a crazy two weeks."

He was also pretty chuffed about maybe making history for Knysna. "Being probably the first homegrown person from Knysna is really cool, and Knysna is such an awesome community, so to represent Knysna in any way is a privilege."

Stubbs' mother, Mandy, was also fairly ecstatic about the news of his selection.

"This year has been simply ridiculous, but the past 10 days have been this crazy kind of whirlwind," is how she described it.

"In mid-April Stubbs was drafted into the SA A team that toured Zimbabwe and many saw this as a stepping stone to playing for the Proteas one day, but few could have expected how quickly that day would come."

Stellar rise

Stubbs made his debut for the SA A side in the first T20 match against a Zimbabwe XI in Harare on 2 May.

There he showed maturity beyond his years as his well-rounded 39* off 37 balls helped steer the side to a five-wicket win. Stubbs only featured in one more match for SA A - the second T20 in which he scored 17* off nine balls at the death - before he received a very special call.

He was offered the opportunity to play for the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is widely regarded as the biggest franchise T20 league in the world.

The news broke on 5 May that he would replace Englishman Tymal Mills in the Mumbai Indians team, and the very next day he landed in Mumbai. "CSA obviously had to release him to go to the IPL, and we are incredibly grateful for them doing so," Mandy said.

While Stubbs' first two IPL games haven't quite gone to plan with two low-scoring innings against Chennai Super Kings and Sunrise Hyderabad, on 17 May he was announced as one of the 16 men who make up the Proteas squad that will play five T20Is in India in June.

The news came a mere 15 months, almost to the day, since he made his debut for the Warriors in the CSA T20 Challenge on 21 February 2021.

Tristan Stubbs way back when he played for SWD at an U13 level.

Domestic success

Prior to his Warriors debut he had only ever played List A (one-day format) or First Class (multi-day format) cricket for Eastern Province - for whom he made his debut on 16 January 2020, playing against his initial home union, SWD.

Mandy didn't have enough words to express the family's pride in Stubbs' achievements. "It's really so great.

Everyone is incredibly proud of him, every single member of the family is behind him," she said. "Hard work pays off, and I firmly believe he has taken his chances whenever he could, and that really does show."

Stubbs' maiden call-up to the national side comes on the back of a phenomenal season in the colours of the Warriors during the 2022 CSA T20 Challenge.

There he finished as the second-highest run scorer in the competition, making it virtually impossible for national selectors to ignore him.

His exploits saw him score 293 runs in seven matches at an average of 48,83 and a strike rate of 183,12, including three half-centuries. Two innings of note came when he smashed 80* off just 31 balls against the Dolphins, and 65 off 35 balls against the Knights.

Stubbs' upbringing

Born in Johannesburg, Tristan Stubbs moved to Knysna with his family when he was eight years old. He completed his primary school career at Knysna Primary and played school cricket for the Knysna Sports Academy where he was named the Cricketer of the Year in 2012.

Iain Coetzee, the coach of the team Stubbs played for and who is now head coach of the academy, expressed his pride in the strides that have been made.

"Anyone who watched him at that age knew he would go far. I identified him as one of three boys who I felt were extremely talented, really could go far and have long, prosperous careers in cricket," Coetzee said. "Of the three, he has excelled the most and shone the brightest."

Stubbs represented SWD at U11 and U13 level before he attended Grey High School in Gqeberha and played all of his high school age group provincial cricket for Eastern Province. He then made his first class debut in January 2020 and the rest, as they say, is history.

Hometown support

While his larger cricketing success has come further afield, Stubbs has always remained a Knysna boykie and the coastal town has always been the headquarters of his growing fan base.

"The support has been amazing," Mandy said. "We [the family] can't just go the shops quickly anymore without someone saying congratulations or mentioning Tristan. Whenever he plays the whole family pops by and we watch his game."

As his career has taken shape, Stubbs' biggest supporters have - and in all likelihood will always be - his parents Mandy and Chris, and his younger sister Jayde.

"We chat to him on the phone every day, we miss him so much. You've earned this Tristan, you've worked so hard and we are so immensely proud of you," said Mandy.

"The support back home has been awesome, overwhelming at times, but it's really cool o see everyone being so supportive," Stubbs said proudly. "Even when I go home now, on the golf course the guys always give me a bit of stick, but it's always good support that I highly appreciate." The first T20I against India will take place on 9 June.

Tristan Stubbs the day he arrived at the Mumbai Indians.