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Cape Town - Jacques Kallis says international retirement has made him more enthusiastic and energised to play T20 cricket.
The 38-year-old retired from all formats of international cricket in July this year after struggling for runs.
He is currently playing for Kolkata Knight Riders in the Champions League T20 event in India and finally came good after a lean spell with the bat.
His unbeaten half-century helped the Knight Riders to a seven-wicket semi-final win over the Hobart Hurricanes in Hyderabad on Thursday.
Kallis anchored his team with a composed 54 not out off 40 balls as Kolkata posted 141-3 to win with five balls to spare in reply to Hobart’s 140-6.
The win was Kolkata’s 14th on the trot and they will now face the Chennai Super Kings in Saturday's final, after MS Dhoni's men crushed Kings XI Punjab by 65 runs in the day's other semi-final.
Kallis, in an interview with the Champions League T20 website, said retiring from Proteas duty has given him more time to focus on T20 cricket.
"I am playing less cricket now. So I am more enthusiastic and more energised for the amount of cricket I do play now," he said.
"The biggest thing is it has given me more opportunity to work on my T20 cricket. I have put a lot of time into it and it is nice to see the hard work paying off. I have worked on giving myself bigger scoring options and allowing myself to become a better T20 player."
Saturday's final between Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings takes place at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru (16:30 SA time).
The 38-year-old retired from all formats of international cricket in July this year after struggling for runs.
He is currently playing for Kolkata Knight Riders in the Champions League T20 event in India and finally came good after a lean spell with the bat.
His unbeaten half-century helped the Knight Riders to a seven-wicket semi-final win over the Hobart Hurricanes in Hyderabad on Thursday.
Kallis anchored his team with a composed 54 not out off 40 balls as Kolkata posted 141-3 to win with five balls to spare in reply to Hobart’s 140-6.
The win was Kolkata’s 14th on the trot and they will now face the Chennai Super Kings in Saturday's final, after MS Dhoni's men crushed Kings XI Punjab by 65 runs in the day's other semi-final.
Kallis, in an interview with the Champions League T20 website, said retiring from Proteas duty has given him more time to focus on T20 cricket.
"I am playing less cricket now. So I am more enthusiastic and more energised for the amount of cricket I do play now," he said.
"The biggest thing is it has given me more opportunity to work on my T20 cricket. I have put a lot of time into it and it is nice to see the hard work paying off. I have worked on giving myself bigger scoring options and allowing myself to become a better T20 player."
Saturday's final between Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings takes place at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru (16:30 SA time).
