SA20 2023

Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) new franchise-based T20 league, the SA20, is scheduled to kickstart from January 10, 2023. The top-tier league will see six teams competing for the coveted title and interestingly, all of the sides taking part in the competition are owned by Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise owners.

The six franchises featuring in the league are- Johannesburg Super Kings, Durban's Super Giants, MI Cape Town, Paarl Royals, Pretoria Capitals, and Sunrisers Eastern Cape. Going by the SA20 Schedule, a total of 33 matches will be played with MI Cape Town and Paarl Royals playing the season opener. Furthermore, the competition will run from January 10 to February 11, but will be halted between January 25 and February 1 as South Africa play England in three World Cup Super League ODIs.

The format of the top-tier league is such that each of the six SA20 franchises will have five home and five away matches which will then be followed by the playoffs rounds. The last four round of the league will see two semi-final fixtures followed by the summit clash with Johannesburg and Centurion getting to host the fixtures. Top four teams of the SA20 Points Table at the conclusion of the league phase will progress to the last four round to lock horns for the prestigious trophy.

The SA20 is South Africa’s third attempt in making a domestic league successful after the failures of the Global League T20 and the Mzansi Super League unable to get off the ground. The management has intentions of playing in the prime summer period of early January to early February every season. Adding to this, the board expects the league to be a success for the level of investment in the league and the addition of Indian franchise owners which will also help the local players to garner experience of playing the T20 format along with the likes of high profile names.