Fielding rarely gets the headlines that batting and bowling do, but in a competition as tight as the SA20, a sharp pair of hands in the deep or at slip has decided more than one final.
Tristan Stubbs currently holds the record for most catches in a series in SA20 history, pouching 11 catches in 11 innings during the 2025/26 season for Sunrisers Eastern Cape. Here’s the full list, the story behind it, and everything else worth knowing about SA20’s best catchers.
Most Catches in a Series in SA20 – Full List
Below is the complete list of the top ten fielding performances by catches taken in a single SA20 series, ranked by total catches. All figures exclude catches taken by wicketkeepers behind the stumps unless the player was also credited for fielding dismissals in the same series.
| Player | Team | Season | Mat | Inns | Ct | Dismissed | Max | Ct/Inn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T Stubbs | SEC | 2025/26 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 2 | 1.0 |
| DA Miller | PR | 2022/23 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 1.0 |
| JDS Neesham | PC | 2022/23 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 0.833 |
| PE Kruger | SEC | 2023/24 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 0.9 |
| H Klaasen | DSG | 2023/24 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 3 | 0.818 |
| AK Markram | SEC | 2023/24 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 0.818 |
| PWA Mulder | JSK | 2025/26 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0.888 |
| M Jansen | SEC | 2023/24 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0.8 |
| Rashid Khan | MICT | 2024/25 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 0.8 |
| Sikandar Raza | PR | 2025/26 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 0.8 |
A quick read of the numbers tells its own story: three of the ten entries belong to Sunrisers Eastern Cape, the league’s most successful franchise, and four of the ten performances came in the most recent 2025/26 season alone, a sign that fielding standards in the SA20 keep climbing every year.
SA20 Most Catches in a Series: Player-by-Player Breakdown
Here’s a closer look at each player on the list, what role they played for their franchise, and how their catching output fit into their season.
1. Tristan Stubbs (Sunrisers Eastern Cape) — 11 catches, 2025/26
South Africa’s dynamic middle-order batter and current Sunrisers captain, Stubbs set the current benchmark for most catches in a single SA20 series while also steering his side to the title.
His athleticism in the ring and calm decision-making under pressure make him one of the most complete fielders the competition has produced.
2. David Miller (Paarl Royals) — 10 catches, 2022/23
“Killer Miller” is best known for his finishing with the bat, but his hands in the deep and at short cover were just as reliable in the league’s inaugural season.
His 10 catches from 10 innings helped Paarl Royals stay competitive in SA20’s first-ever campaign.
3. James Neesham (Pretoria Capitals) — 10 catches, 2022/23
The New Zealand allrounder has a reputation worldwide for spectacular, acrobatic catches, and his first SA20 season was no exception.
Neesham took 10 catches across all 12 of Pretoria Capitals’ matches, often stationed in the outfield where his reach and reflexes were put to full use.
4. Patrick Kruger (Sunrisers Eastern Cape) — 9 catches, 2023/24
A South African all-rounder known for his aggressive batting and medium pace, Kruger has bounced between several SA20 franchises before settling in at Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
His 2023/24 campaign saw him become one of the team’s most dependable fielders in the ring, backing up his all-round utility with 9 sharp catches.
5. Heinrich Klaasen (Durban’s Super Giants) — 9 catches, 2023/24
Primarily recognised as an explosive keeper-batter for South Africa, Klaasen’s fielding numbers for Durban’s Super Giants show just how involved he was in the team’s dismissals beyond the stumps, taking 9 catches across an 11-innings campaign in 2023/24.
6. Aiden Markram (Sunrisers Eastern Cape) — 9 catches, 2023/24
As the Sunrisers’ captain during the franchise’s early dominant years, Markram led from the slip cordon as much as from the top of the order.
His sharp reflexes close to the bat were a big reason Sunrisers Eastern Cape built a reputation as SA20’s best fielding unit in the league’s first two seasons.
7. Wiaan Mulder (Joburg Super Kings) — 8 catches, 2025/26
The tall South African all-rounder’s height and reach make him a natural at backward point and gully, and his 8 catches in just 9 innings for Joburg Super Kings in 2025/26 gave him one of the best catches-per-innings ratios on this list.
8. Marco Jansen (Sunrisers Eastern Cape) — 8 catches, 2023/24
Best known as a left-arm quick who troubles batters with extra bounce, Jansen’s height also translates well in the field.
His 8 catches for Sunrisers Eastern Cape in 2023/24 came largely in the ring and at gully, adding another dimension to his all-round value.
9. Rashid Khan (MI Cape Town) — 8 catches, 2024/25
The Afghan legspinner and MI Cape Town captain is widely regarded as one of the sharpest fielders in world cricket, particularly off his own bowling.
His 8 catches in the 2024/25 SA20 season underline why opposition batters treat every mistimed shot near him as a genuine risk.
10. Sikandar Raza (Paarl Royals) — 8 catches, 2025/26
The veteran Zimbabwean all-rounder is a utility player in the truest sense, and his fielding is a big part of that reputation.
Raza’s 8 catches for Paarl Royals in 2025/26 came alongside his usual contributions with bat and ball, making him one of the league’s most complete overseas performers.
Tristan Stubbs: The Fielding Standout Behind SA20’s Best Series
No name on this list carries quite as much weight right now as Tristan Stubbs. The Gqeberha-born batter has been part of Sunrisers Eastern Cape since the franchise’s very first season, but 2025/26 was different, he took over the captaincy and led the side to a third SA20 title, all while quietly building the best catching series the tournament has ever seen.
Stubbs isn’t a specialist slip fielder by trade; he’s primarily known for his power-hitting in the middle order and his composure while chasing totals. What makes his 11 catches in 11 innings stand out is the range of positions he covers, short cover, backward point, and the ring inside the circle, areas where half-chances are common but clean takes are not. He converted 11 opportunities into 11 dismissals without a single drop across the campaign, a strike rate that even specialist fielders rarely match.
His season wasn’t just about fielding, either. Stubbs anchored several Sunrisers run-chases with the bat and was central to South Africa’s white-ball plans through 2025, which only added context to why his fielding output mattered so much, a captain who leads from the field as much as from the crease tends to lift everyone around him.
What the Data Tells Us: Key Fielding Trends in SA20
A few patterns stand out once you look past the individual names:
- Sunrisers Eastern Cape dominate the list. Three of the ten entries — Stubbs, Kruger, and Markram — played for SEC, reflecting the franchise’s consistent emphasis on fielding standards across multiple seasons.
- Batters, not just specialist fielders, top the charts. The current record holder, Stubbs, and the second-placed Miller are both recognised primarily as batters, showing that catching output in the SA20 isn’t confined to any one type of player.
- All-rounders punch above their weight. Neesham, Kruger, Mulder, and Raza all combine bat-and-ball duties with elite fielding, a trend that reflects how modern T20 squads value all-round athleticism over specialist roles.
- Recent seasons are raising the bar. Four of the ten best series-catching performances have come in the last two SA20 seasons (2024/25 and 2025/26), suggesting fielding intensity in the league is still rising.
- A perfect conversion rate matters. Only Stubbs and Miller managed a catch in literally every innings they fielded (Ct/Inn of 1.0), which is what currently separates the top two spots from the rest of the list.
Most Catches in a Series vs Most Catches in SA20 (Career)
It’s worth separating two records that often get mixed up. “Most catches in a series” refers to a single SA20 season, the list above. “Most catches in SA20” (career) tracks a player’s total across every season they’ve played, which naturally favours players who’ve featured since the league’s 2023 launch, such as Aiden Markram, David Miller, and Heinrich Klaasen.
A player can lead the career list without ever topping a single-series list, and vice versa, which is exactly why Stubbs’ 2025/26 season stands out — it’s a single-tournament peak that outpaces even multi-season totals from some of the league’s longest-serving fielders.
Also Read:
- Top Players With Most Ducks in SA20 (2026 Rankings)
- Top Players with Most Wickets in SA20 (2026 Updated)
Conclusion
Tristan Stubbs’ 11 catches in the 2025/26 SA20 season stand as the benchmark for fielding excellence in a single series, edging out David Miller’s earlier mark from the league’s first year.
But the wider list tells a bigger story, of Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s fielding culture, of all-rounders quietly becoming the league’s most valuable athletes, and of standards rising with every passing season. As SA20 grows, expect this list to keep changing hands.
FAQs
Tristan Stubbs holds the record, with 11 catches from 11 innings for Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the 2025/26 SA20 season.
David Miller took 10 catches in 10 innings for Paarl Royals during the inaugural 2022/23 SA20 season, the second-best series catching return in the league’s history.
Sunrisers Eastern Cape have three players on the top-ten list — Tristan Stubbs, Patrick Kruger, and Aiden Markram — more than any other franchise.
Yes. Tristan Stubbs (2025/26) and David Miller (2022/23) are the only two players on the list with a catch-per-innings ratio of exactly 1.0, meaning they didn’t miss a fielding contribution in a single innings they played.
Three catches in one innings is the highest individual mark, achieved by James Neesham, Patrick Kruger, Heinrich Klaasen, Rashid Khan, and Sikandar Raza during their respective series.
Yes. The series record is set within a single season, while the career record adds up catches across every season a player has appeared in. Stubbs’ 2025/26 tally is a series record, not necessarily the all-time career total.
