Photo Credit: SA20 League
The second Betway SA20 auction takes place on Wednesday, 27 September with each of the six teams still to complete their 19-players squads, which will include a Rookie for the first time.
Betway SA20 runs through how each squad is currently shaping up, and what each team will likely want from the auction. We look at Paarl Royals…
Paarl Royals
Remaining purse:
R8.865 million
List of pre-signed and retained players:
David Miller, Jos Buttler (England), Obed McCoy (West Indies), Jason Roy (England), Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Bjorn Fortuin, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dane Vilas, Wihan Lubbe, Mitchell van Buuren, Ferisco Adams, Codi Yusuf, Evan Jones, Kwena Maphaka, Fabian Allen
Last season’s overseas retentions:
Jos Buttler (England), Jason Roy (England)
New overseas additions:
Obed McCoy (West Indies), Fabian Allen (West Indies)
Remaining player slots: 3
Auction: 2
Wildcard: 0
Rookie: 1
What they might want:
The Paarl Royals were heavily reliant on their spin twins Bjorn Fortuin and Tabraiz Shamsi last season, particularly at their home ground Boland Park. And now they’ve added wildcard Fabian Allen from the West Indies to complement the frontline spinners. The seamers, such as Lungi Ngidi, Ferisco Adams and new signing Obed McCoy, are adept at utilising cutters and slower balls to get the most out of the slow Paarl surface. However, they will need to adapt better to the fast and pacy conditions of the Highveld after falling short in the semi-final last season at the Wanderers. Armed with a hefty sum still left in the purse, the Royals may adopt a similar strategy as last season when they raced out of the blocks with two major bids for Ngidi and Shamsi. This time around, they are likely to be in the market for a big-name all-rounder able to clear the boundary and bowl vital overs during the middle period.
Potential purchases:
Colin de Grandhomme (Base price: R850 000), Mohammad Nawaz (R850 000), Romario Shepherd (R850 000), Sharafuddin Ashraf (R425 000), George Garton (R175 000), Matt Critchley (R425 000), Jake Ball (R425 000), George Dockrell (R425 000)
Name of Author: SA20 League
SA20, officially known as the Betway SA20 for sponsorship reasons, is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament in South Africa organized by Cricket South Africa (CSA). First held in the 2023 season, the league features six city-based teams. Sunrisers Eastern Cape won the first two editions of the tournament.
