SA20, officially known as the Betway SA20 for sponsorship reasons, is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament organized by Cricket South Africa (CSA) in South Africa. It features six teams representing different cities and competes in a round-robin format followed by playoffs and a final match. The inaugural season took place in January-February 2023, and the second season (Betway SA20 2024) is set to kick off on January 10th, 2024.
What Is SA20?
Betway SA20: This is the current name for South Africa’s premier Twenty20 cricket league, officially called “South African T20 League.” The first season was held in January-February 2023, and the second season (Betway SA20 2024) will run from 10 January to 10 February 2024.
SA20, known as the Betway SA20 for sponsorship reasons, is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament in South Africa, organized by Cricket South Africa and first contested during the 2022–23 season. It is contested by six teams based in cities around the country.
When Was Betway SA20 South Africa Founded?
While the Betway SA20 tournament’s format and concept were developed in 2022, the official founding date isn’t pinpointed to a single day.
Here’s why:
- Conceptualization and Planning: The idea for a new T20 league in South Africa began circulating within Cricket South Africa (CSA) around mid-2021.
- Formal Announcement and Development: The official announcement of the tournament, initially named South African T20 League, came in November 2021. Following this, the process of securing franchises, sponsors, and finalizing logistics unfolded throughout 2022.
- Inaugural Season: The first season of the tournament, with Betway as the title sponsor and rebranded as Betway SA20, finally took place in January-February 2023.
Therefore, it’s more accurate to say that the Betway SA20 evolved out of a conceptual stage in 2021, with its official establishment and first season occurring in 2023.
The SA20 Teams
There are six teams in the Betway SA20 competition, all privately-owned by Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises. The Joburg Super Kings, Durban’s Super Giants, MI Cape Town, Paarl Royals, Pretoria Capitals and the Sunrisers Eastern Cape compete for the inaugural title this year.
The six teams play each other twice in the group stages of the competition before the top four sides move to the semi-final stages.
| Team | City | Home ground | Owner | Captain | Head coach | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Durban’s Super Giants | Durban, Kwazulu-Natal | Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban | RPSG Group | Quinton De Kock | Lance Klusener | |
| Joburg Super Kings | Johannesburg, Gauteng | Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg | India Cements | Faf du Plessis | Stephen Fleming | |
| MI Cape Town | Cape Town, Western Cape | Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town | Indiawin Sports | Rashid Khan | Robin Peterson | |
| Paarl Royals | Paarl, Western Cape | Boland Park, Paarl | Royals Sports Group | David Miller | JP Duminy | |
| Pretoria Capitals | Pretoria, Gauteng | Centurion Park, Centurion | JSW Group | Wayne Parnell | Graham Ford | |
| Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Gqeberha, Eastern Cape | St George’s Park Cricket Ground, Gqeberha | SUN Group | Aiden Markram | Adrian Birrell | |
Conclusion
SA20, known as the Betway SA20 for sponsorship reasons, is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament in South Africa, organized by Cricket South Africa (CSA) and first contested during the 2022–23 season. It is contested by six teams based in cities around the country. The first winners of the tournament were Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
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