Rising cricket star and a student at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), Levert Manje, has been selected as part of the Imperial Lions T20 squad traveling to Namibia for the 2022 Global T20. The team will take on Richelieu Eagles and Lahore Qalandars in September 2022.
Manje made his Lions debut in March 2022 and has a rookie professional contract with the Lions team. He is the only UJ Cricket player called up for this tour.
“Manje is an important player in the South African system. He is a former SA under-19 player and is a black African top batsman. So, in terms of where we trying to go in SA Cricket, he ticks a lot of boxes.
“I think the Lions team are very aware he is a great player although he had a poor season last season, as well as going through a lot of different things such as being a young rookie in the professional space. We have to focus on developing this young man to feed into feeding into the next group of batters that will compete for a Proteas squad, hopefully in the near future,” says Siyabonga Sibiya, UJ Cricket Club Manager and men’s cricket team head coach.
Sibiya emphasised that Manje is grateful for the opportunity given to him and is excited about getting game time in Namibia.
The Transport Management student joined UJ Cricket in 2020. He has a colourful resumé having participated in the 2020 ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup.