Schools SA20 Profile – Jason Rowles – St David’s Marist Inanda
Jason Rowles pressed the restart button. It is not a physical button, it is in his head, and he did so just after he reached 50 in a Youth Test contest between the South Africa u19 team and England u19 in February. In his mind, his scoreboard was wiped clean, and he was on zero again.
This is a practice he does regularly. It helps the 16-year-old avoid falling into the trap of thinking he has reached his goal whenever he reaches a milestone with the bat. Doing that helps batsmen to refocus and not fall into the “milestone relaxation phenomenon” and lose concentration, as a result.
That practice has helped Rowles pile on the runs. One of his favourite innings was the 150 he blasted against Bishops in a Fasken Time Cricket Festival match in September 2024. It was one of numerous “daddy hundreds” the 16-year-old has scored for St David’s Marist Inanda in the past two years.
“As a coach, there are batters who make you hold your heart in your hands when they walk out to bat. Jason has the opposite effect. He looks the same whether he is on 51 or just arrived at the middle,” Malibongwe Maketa, the SA u19 coach, shared.
Rowles did not lose concentration while facing England’s army of talented spinners and their battery of pace bowlers in Stellenbosch’s hot and windy conditions. He added 40 more runs and was dismissed for a well-played 90 off 118 balls. It was the first of three half-centuries from the teenager in four innings.
“It is my favourite outing with SA u19,” he revealed. “It was great learning and a good challenge against a high-quality attack.”
His pride in the knock didn’t come just from the fact that he achieved a milestone, but because it contributed to a successful outing by the team. Rowles, who named Steve Smith as his favourite international player because of the Australian’s work ethic and dedication to continuous improvement, also admires Smith’s team-first philosophy. Rowles will forego a milestone if it means that his team wins a match.
His contributions with the bat for the SA u19 side earned him the Player of the Series award. No other batsman was as consistent as he was. The trophy that he received for his outstanding contributions has now been afforded pride of place in the Rowles’ home.
When he was younger, he spent hours in the backyard, training until nightfall. When his parents turned on the outside lights, he would convert his cricket games into day-night matches. He would have played all night if anyone had dared him to do so.
“Jason has an incredible appetite for the game. Our training sessions go on for hours. But don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t just want to aimlessly hit balls. He is an incredible learner. He wants to walk away with new information from every session,” Bongani Ntini, who has taken him for private coaching over the past six years, said.
“Jason is forever looking for opportunities to get into the nets and always finds someone to throw or feed balls to him, even if it is for five minutes,” Jeff Levin, his coach at St David’s, weighed in.
This drive for continuous improvement is the reason why Rowles does not focus too much on previous accolades. He loves his Player of the Series award from the u19 series against England, but he won’t let that define him as a cricketer. As far as he is concerned, it is recognition for the work he put in before that. After he received the award, he pressed the reset button because other milestones await in the future.
That is the 16-year-old’s mindset as he represents St David’s in their Schools SA20 final round campaign.
It helps that the school has strict guidelines. St David’s doesn’t allow athletes to bring provincial or national training or match kit onto the school grounds.
Rowles leaves the acclaim and success at home in the same manner. His current focus is to help his side fight for the title, whether it’s with the bat, ball, or through his fielding.
