IPL 2026: Gujarat Titans rope in SA keeper-batter Esterhuizen as Banton’s replacement

New Delhi: Gujarat Titans (GT) have signed South Africa wicketkeeper-batter Connor Esterhuizen as a replacement for England batter Tom Banton, who has been ruled out of the ongoing 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) due to a finger injury.

In an IPL media advisory on Friday, the tournament said Esterhuizen will join the squad at his base price of INR 75 lakh in what will also be his maiden stint in the ten-team tournament. Esterhuizen recently made his international debut for South Africa against New Zealand in a five-match T20I series held last month.

He made an impressive start by winning two Player of the Match Awards and was also named Player of the Series, as South Africa clinched the series 3-2 after being 2-1 down. In all, Esterhuizen finished the series with 200 runs in five games at an average of 50 and a strike rate of 145.98.

Esterhuizen reached 39th in the Men’s T20I rankings, the fourth-best by any South African after five matches. He also earned a nomination for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award alongside India duo of wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson and ace fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.

Esterhuizen’s inclusion is expected to bolster GT’s overseas batting options while also being a reliable wicketkeeping choice behind Jos Buttler. In this year’s SA20, where Pretoria Capitals were the runners-up, Esterhuizen played all 12 games but could score only 166 runs at an average of 15.09 and a strike rate of 105.73.

But he gained huge experience by playing under the captaincy of Proteas left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj and head coach, former India skipper Sourav Ganguly, after being recruited as a rookie by MI Cape Town for the second season of the competition.

GT, the IPL 2022 champions led by India’s Test and ODI captain Shubman Gill, will take on three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday evening.