SA20 growth highlighted by more money and more players

The SA20 salary cap will be increased by R5.1m to R39.1m per team for the 2023/24 season, with squad sizes up from 17 players to 19.

Another new feature will be the addition of a local rookie player in each squad, who must be 22 or younger and  had not played in last season’s tournament. The addition of the rookie is a small step in creating a development element in the competition, said league commissioner Graeme Smith. 

“We saw some special performances from young players in our first season. SA20 remains aspirational for up and coming cricketers and this is an opportunity for them to show their skills,” he said. 

In last season’s tournament, Jordan Hermann, 21, and Gerald Coetzee, 22, stood out among the young players, with both making an impression for their teams, the Sunrisers Eastern Cape and the Joburg Super Kings. Coetzee went on to make his Proteas debut last summer against the West Indies, while Hermann has been picked for the SA A team’s tour to Sri Lanka. 

The league said on Wednesday the trading window for SA players was open, allowing teams to make “tactical trades” before this year’s player auction. 

The wild card element, which saw Jofra Archer picked by MI Cape Town last season, remains, with teams also allowed to sign that one player before the auction. While squad sizes have increased, the structure of the teams remains the same: each squad must have at least 11 SA players while starting teams must contain at least seven local players. Overseas players are limited to four per starting team, keeping it in line with the IPL and new rules that have reportedly been proposed by the International Cricket Council.

The English Telegraph newspaper this week reported the ICC wants to apply a rule to T20 Leagues, limiting the number of overseas players to four in starting teams to protect the international game. The move is seen as a response to the International League T20 tournament in the UAE at the same time as the SA20, which allows nine overseas players per starting team. This year’s inaugural Major League Cricket competition in the US will allow up to six foreign players in starting teams. 

The ICC reportedly wants to mandate payment to cricket boards from franchises for signing foreign players.

Last season’s SA20 proved a resounding hit with local audiences, with the introduction of six new teams — all owned by conglomerates in India, which run franchises in the Indian Premier League. The six stadiums which hosted matches attracted large crowds and the final at the Wanderers was sold out, despite having to be pushed back a day due to bad weather.