'T20 nomad' Rilee Rossouw writes his name in lights at the BPL

Rilee Rossouw was pottering around the Shere Bangla National Stadium when it happened.

"Tom Moody came up to me just after warm-up saying that I am playing. I was like, 'what about the big man?' He said no, we couldn't get his NOC," Rossouw tells ESPNcricinfo.

This happened exactly 12 months ago, and before Moody's message, Rossouw was quite sure that Chris Gayle, who had just arrived to strengthen an already impressive Rangpur Riders side, would take his place among the four overseas players. But Gayle couldn't get a clearance from Cricket West Indies.

"I think I made 83 against Dhaka in that game, and I never looked back." Rossouw says.

He made 558 runs last year, the most by a batsman in a single BPL season, at an average of 69.75 and a strike rate of exactly 150. And even though he's switched teams in 2019-20, his form has remained the same. Now part of Khulna Tigers, and getting ready to face Rajshahi Royals in the first qualifier, Rossouw has made 458 runs at an average of 50.88 and strike-rate of 148.47. He has become the ideal T20 batsman, scoring many runs and quickly.

"I think [Khulna] is one of the best teams in the tournament, but unfortunately the results lately haven't gone our way," Rossouw says. "We haven't played the perfect game yet, which is good for us. At the back end of the tournament, hopefully something can click. When we get good momentum, I don't think there's any team that can stop us."

Rossouw, who no longer plays international cricket, now spends most of his time in England as a Kolpak player and the rest of it hopping from one T20 league to another. "It is my job at the moment, to be a T20 nomad. To play cricket around the world."

And to make sure he is an attractive pick for subcontinent teams, Rossouw has been working on playing well on slow and low pitches. "We play half of our cricket on these type of wickets," he says. "I have been to India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka a lot of times. It becomes a second nature. Back home in South Africa, the coastal wickets are slow and low.

"You get to learn and play in these wickets on a daily basis, so one comes prepared. When you get a nice belter of a wicket, you make sure you cash in."

Considering his struggles from the 2017 BPL are a thing of the past, it seems Rossouw's work is paying off.

"You get a mental picture beforehand, about where you are traveling," he says. "What works in Bangladesh - probably don't want to come as much forward. In South Africa, you play off the back foot. It is different everywhere, but you get a pretty good idea about the conditions."

Rossouw says he has been a fan of the BPL since it offers something to every batsman. "We don't rate [tournaments]. Bangladesh has its own challenges. Wickets are sometimes slow and sometimes it turns a lot. It doesn't matter how good or bad as a player, if you can put it in the right spot at the right time, anything can happen.

"I think the BPL is a really good tournament. It is very professional in regards to the game schedules and how things are run."

Rossouw has also turned into a bit of a senior pro with Khulna. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, the rising Afghanistan wicketkeeper-batsman, recently said in an interview that he seeks Rossouw, among some of the other senior players, for advice.

"Couple of years ago, I was in their shoes. I wanted information and knowledge, luckily guys like AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis helped me," Rossouw says. "I learned from them. In return I can share knowledge with some younger players.

"The time for learning is at practices or before the game. During a game, they are pretty switched on and know exactly what they want to do. It is fantastic to play with people from all over the world. You don't know what type of personality they are. The beauty of cricket is that it brings people from all around the world."

Following the BPL, Rossouw is also looking forward to the English summer where he hopes to give back a little more to Hampshire.

"Funnily enough, I have not yet played my best cricket in England. Sadly as well. I feel like Hampshire deserves a lot more from me. I did alright but according to my standards, it is not good enough.

"I have one more season with them. They backed me throughout the three years that I have been with them, so hopefully I can give something back in the coming T20 season."

Rossouw would like to leave a mark in Bangladesh too, and finishing as the top-scorer in two consecutive BPLs will certainly make him big in these parts. He has stiff competition - team-mate Mushfiqur Rahim is just nine runs behind - but as he found out in the last BPL, he has the ability to rise to bigger challenges.