With the potential to represent the Proteas in all three formats, Bedingham has so far shown all the signs of a player who has matured like the finest of wines, and the stage is all set for him to dazzle the cricketing world with his talent.
Young in his international career but matured in age, he carries a wealth of experience in List A and first-class cricket. With total matches played surpassing a rare double-century mark, he boasts a total run tally of over 10 000.
There are not many out there who can hold a bat so firmly, with an impressive average of over 50 in red-ball cricket. After only making his international debut aged 29, and with only six Test matches played, he is already one of the leading Test players in the country.
A debut at the age of 29 leaves one to wonder, though, what took him so long to make his first international appearance, especially with a consistently heavy flow of runs over his career?
Currently one of the top run-scorers with 926 runs to go with five centuries in eight English County matches, Bedingham’s ancestry visa qualified him to play for Durham in County cricket as a local player.
That opened the door to a potential future call-up to the Three Lions of England.
Cricket South Africa swooped in and handed Bedingham a Test debut against India in 2023 despite denying him a central contract soon after.
Fresh off a record-breaking SA ‘A’ one-day international century against Sri Lanka A , the 30-year-old displayed his full array of shots and consistently scored at more than a run a ball, while playing extravagant shots to all parts of the JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom on Wednesday.
His score of 188 off 129 balls surpassed Reeza Hendricks’ previous record List A score of 181.
Bedingham credits his success to continuously readjusting his game plans with every format.
“Well, firstly, it’s to play with new teammates; everyone is so talented and can’t wait to learn off everyone. Hopefully I can also pass on some knowledge from my experiences,” said Bedingham.
“Fifty overs is a long time to bat, so as a batter you always have more time than you think to bat!
“I never really have goals in terms of runs, I’d just really like to play a big part in winning the team a game or two.”
The right-handed batter wants to be in and around the Proteas squad as it builds towards the 2027 ODI World Cup to give himself the best chance to be part of the team.
“It’s pretty simple: All that is needed is to score as many runs as possible. You can never score enough runs and then, when scoring those runs, try to do it at a quick strike-rate,” he said.
Bedingham is also a handy T20 player. His career strike-rate of 135 leaves a lot to promise after making himself available for the SA20 next year. With the Sunrisers Eastern Cape chasing a second title defence, the stage will be set for him to make inroads into the Proteas side.
The 2025 SA20 League fixtures we announced on Monday and Sunrisers open with a match against MI Cape Town, while the final returns to the Wanderers.