Photo Credit: SA20 League
The third Betway SA20 auction takes place on Tuesday, 1 October in Cape Town with each of the six teams still to complete their 19-players squads, including selecting a Rookie in the draft.
Betway SA20 runs through how each squad is currently shaping up, and what each club will likely want from the auction.
DURBAN’S SUPER GIANTS
Head coach: Lance Klusener
Retained for Season 3: Noor Ahmad (Afghanistan), Matthew Breetzke, Junior Dala, Quinton de Kock, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder, Naveen-ul-Haq (Afghanistan), Bryce Parsons, Dwaine Pretorius, Jason Smith, Jon-Jon Smuts, Prenelan Subrayen
Pre-signings: Brandon King (West Indies), Kane Williamson (New Zealand), Chris Woakes (England)
Wildcard: Marcus Stoinis (Australia)
What they might want:
DSG have retained the core of the squad that saw them reach their first-ever SA20 Final last year, and have further bolstered their squad with the addition of some high-quality overseas players like New Zealand’s captain Kane Williamson. England international Reece Topley is not available this year though, which has left DSG in search of a left-arm seam bowler.
Potential purchases (reserve price):
Josh Little (R850 000), Beuran Hendricks (R175 000), Duan Jansen (R175 000), Stefan Tait (R175 000)
JOBURG SUPER KINGS
Head coach: Stephen Fleming (New Zealand)
Retained for Season 3: Faf du Plessis – captain, Moeen Ali (England), Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Leus du Plooy (Hungary-England), Donovan Ferreira, Sibonelo Makhanya, Imran Tahir, David Wiese, Lizaad Williams
Pre-signings: Maheesh Theekshana (Sri Lanka), Jonny Bairstow (England), Devon Conway (New Zealand)
Trade-in: Tabraiz Shamsi (from Paarl Royals)
What they might want:
JSK have opted for a spin-heavy attack complimented by express fast bowlers for Season 3. They are, with the departure of Romario Shepherd, lean in the seam-bowling allrounder department which could place their focus on filling that void at the auction.
Potential purchases (reserve price):
Curtis Campher (R175 000), Evan Jones (R175 000), Duan Jansen (R175 000), Matthew Boast (R175 000), Tristan Luus (R175 000), Sisanda Magala (R175 000), Ruan de Swardt (R175 000), Shane Dadswell (R175 000)
MI CAPE TOWN
Head coach: Robin Peterson
Retained for Season 3: Dewald Brevis, Connor Esterhuizen, Thomas Kaber, George Linde, Delano Potgieter, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Rassie van der Dussen, Rashid Khan (Afghanistan), Chris Benjamin (England), Nuwan Thushara (Sri Lanka)
Pre-signings: Ben Stokes (England), Trent Boult (New Zealand), Azmatullah Omarzai (Afghanistan)
Wildcard: Corbin Bosch
What they might want:
MICT have added a blockbuster signing in England Test captain Ben Stokes to their roster in a bid to make the playoffs for the first time in Season 3. With a hefty purse still in their jackpot, they could be searching for another high-quality top-order batter (preferably local).
Potential purchases (reserve price):
Reeza Hendricks (R175 000), Tony de Zorzi (R175 000), Martin Guptill (R1.5m), Joe Denly (R425 000)
PAARL ROYALS
Head coach: Shane Bond (New Zealand)
Retained for Season 3: Keith Dudgeon, Bjorn Fortuin, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Nqaba Peter, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, John Turner (England), Mitchell van Buuren, Codi Yusuf
Pre-signings: Joe Root (England), Dinesh Karthik (India), Sam Hain (England), Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Afghanistan)
Wildcard: Jacob Bethell (England)
Trade-in: Dayyaan Galiem (from Joburg Super Kings)
What they might want:
Paarl Royals have the biggest remaining purse at the auction, R11.95-million but only have one spot left to fill outside of the rookie. This could make for an interesting auction as they hold the aces should a bidding war begin. They could most likely be on the hunt for a back-up power hitter in the middle order.
Potential purchases:
Lorcan Tucker (R425 000), Colin Ingram (R175 000)
PRETORIA CAPITALS
Head coach: Jonathan Trott (England)
Retained for Season 3: Eathan Bosch, Daryn Dupavillon, Will Jacks (England), Senuran Muthusamy, Jimmy Neesham (New Zealand), Anrich Nortje, Wayne Parnell, Migael Pretorius, Rilee Rossouw, Steve Stolk, Tiaan van Vuuren, Kyle Verreynne
Pre-signings: Will Smeed (England), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Afghanistan)
Wildcard: Liam Livingstone (England)
What they might want:
The unavailability of England’s Adil Rashid has left the Capitals in need of a high-quality wrist spinner. That will be their top priority on their auction shopping list.
Potential purchases (reserve price):
Qais Ahmed (R850 000), Izharulhaq Naveed (R425 000), Matthew Parkinson (R175 000), Mason Crane (R425 000), Junaid Dawood (R175 000)
SUNRISERS EASTERN CAPE
Head coach: Adrian Birrell
Retained for Season 3: Aiden Markram – captain, Ottneil Baartman, Marco Jansen, Tristan Stubbs, Tom Abell (England), Jordan Hermann, Patrick Kruger, Beyers Swanepoel, Simon Harmer, Liam Dawson (England), Caleb Seleka, Andile Simelane.
Pre-signings: Roelof van der Merwe (Netherlands), Zak Crawley (England), Craig Overton (England).
Wildcard: David Bedingham
What they might want:
The back-to-back champions utilised Tristan Stubbs as their wicketkeeper in Season 2 to balance out their starting XI, but could be on the hunt for a permanent solution behind the stumps next season.
Potential purchases:
Meeka-eel Prince (R175 000), Rivaldo Moonsamy (R175 000), Grant Roelofsen (R175 000), Jean du Plesssis (R175 000).
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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.
