Senuran Muthusamy was at his best brilliant for South Africa in the T20I series-opener against Australia in Darwin on Sunday. Debuting in just his fourth T20I, the 31-year-old returned figures of 1/24 to complete a brilliant bowling effort. The all-rounder bowled out the risky Josh Inglis for a duck after South Africa elected to bowl in the capital city of Australia’s Northern Territory. His spell limited Australia to 178 in 20 overs, even though Tim David scored 83 off 52 balls. While chasing 179, South Africa were limited to 161/9, with Australia winning the match by 17 runs.
Senuran Muthusamy was born on 22 February 1994 in Durban, Natal Province of South Africa to Indian parents. Nevertheless, he has close ties to his Tamil origin, with certain relatives still living in Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu.
Education and Introduction to Cricket
He finished his school education at Clifton College, prior to studying a bachelor’s degree in social science at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, with a specialisation in media and marketing. Muthusamy was exposed to cricket at a tender age as a youngster growing up in Durban, where he started impressing during local tournaments and school matches.
ALSO READ: Australia Set New T20I Winning Record Yet Remain Behind Afghanistan, India in Rankings
He represented the Kwa-Zulu Natal province from Under-11 to Under-19 level but was reluctant to think that he could play professionally. Nonetheless, his dedication to making himself a better player made him represent South Africa at the Under-19 level. In 2015-16, he was contracted by Dolphins as an upper-order batsman before the season.
Transition from Batsman to All-Rounder
Even after blasting a career-high 181 against the Knights in January 2017, his time as an opening-order batsman was brief. “His batting just dipped a little but his bowling went to a completely different level,” Muthusamy’s former team-mate Imraan Khan said in 2019 to ESPNcricinfo.
Muthusamy outstanding performance with the ball got him a debut Test invitation for the away tour of India, where he made his debut in a match at Visakhapatnam. He got his first Test match wicket in the game, that too of the then India captain Virat Kohli, caught and bowled.
Competition and Career Challenges
But Muthusamy has found it difficult to find a permanent spot within the team, due to intense competition within the South African cricket environment, where players like Keshav Maharaj don’t seem to be slowing down.
Muthusamy was among the South Africa WTC 2025 winning team, but did not play in the game.
