After a high-profile match, a cricket stadium IPL is a lovely spot to relax. A unique calm descends between the abruptly energized sprinklers, and the stilled air is resonant with the shadows and echoes of what happened there in the hours and days before. On the afternoon of Monday, January 6, Newlands was not like that.
It ought to have been. South Africa finished their 10-wicket victory against Pakistan at 5:40 p.m. to secure the men’s Test series. However, labor men began converting the pitch from a Test cricket cathedral to a nightclub fit for the SA20 at midnight, six hours and twenty minutes later.
With a wave of his hand, an official said, “This will all be blue,” as the sun began to set on the venue that would host the Mumbai Indians Cape Town for the third edition of the event for the following month.
Sunrisers Eastern Cape, the two-time winners, will play MI Cape Town at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Thursday in the opening of this year’s 34 games. Only two of the 31 days that follow won’t include at least one match: five of them are doubleheaders. The SA20 is here, ready or not.
“Every year when we get to this point it’s a balance of excitement and fear,” league commissioner Graeme Smith said Wednesday at a news conference in Cape Town. “We’ve put in a ton of effort to get here. After two seasons, we’ve become a well-known brand that has risen to become perhaps the largest league outside of the IPL.
Fans eager to witness some of the best players in the world compete at a level where winning or losing isn’t a matter of national importance have filled stadiums for the SA20, even larger than for the majority of the South Africa men’s team matches.
What factors contributed to the competition’s success?
“Being able to attract the six franchises we have,” Smith stated. “They are fiercely competitive and highly professional. Additionally, we’ve got some exceptional international players, the greatest from South Africa, and good local players.”
In addition to being owned by IPL teams, each club bears the names of its Indian big brothers. Additionally, they host all of their games at the most renowned locations in South Africa. This distinguishes the tournament from leagues such as the BBL, where teams with names that do not have the same prestige as IPL teams may play at venues that are difficult for fans, especially in foreign nations, to connect with. Anyone up for Geelong’s Renegades vs. Hurricanes match?
In the increasingly crowded T20 franchise league schedule, half of the six clubs in the United Arab Emirates’ ILT20—which competes with the SA20—are owned by the Indian Premier League. For Smith, however, the parallels end there.
“Compared to the ILT20, we regard ourselves as being significantly different. Our ultimate objective is to help South African players, as we are a South African league with a majority of South African players.
“I feel that the ILT20 is a league that is horrible for the game, but it’s really hard for me to avoid sounding like I’m disparaging it. They don’t invest in local cricket, and they need a lot of foreign players to assemble a side. That presents a problem for the world game and must be handled.
“We want to establish a worldwide competition, but we also want to help South African cricket. We have concentrated on growing the SA20 to the point that we are acknowledged as one of the largest leagues outside of the IPL, even if we do not have complete control over these matters. The input we’re receiving is that, and that’s essential to us.
“What we’ve seen from the player group is that this is where they want to play because it’s competitive, there’s good crowds, the standard of cricket is good, and that this is the place to come and challenge yourself.”
ILT20 XIs can have up to nine foreign players, reflecting the fact that just 11.5% of the population is Emirati. A squad can have no more than four international players in the SA20 and IPL.
Dinesh Karthik’s signing with the Paarl Royals has strengthened the SA20’s desire to be the IPL’s big brother. Karthik is 39 years old. He is the first Indian player to play in a non-Indian franchise league, although his finest days are over. And that’s crucial.
“Indian players are sought after; it’s always a talking point,” Smith stated. “You can’t be a league that’s going to challenge the best in the world if you don’t have a global audience.”
Nevertheless, Smith insisted that the SA20 was first created with the goal of “bridging the gap between South African domestic cricket and the standard of international cricket.” Having six competitive teams with top-tier coaches and medical personnel helps achieve that. They are competing against the world’s top players and performing at a high level. The crowds and production quality are then added.
To suspend your notion that the event is a CSA product, you don’t have to close your eyes. The public believes that the SA20 is a representation of what cricket in South Africa might be if it weren’t for those clumsy suits, even if the board’s emblem is nothing like what the SA20 does. The truth is different.
“[CSA are] a majority shareholder [in the SA20] and we work closely with them, trying to make sure that scheduling is in place,” Smith stated.
“I believe that the CSA squad and the SA20 team get along well. We all want cricket to become a tremendous national IPL success. At the SA20, it is our objective.
We have stated from the beginning that this is a chance to bring cricket fans back to life. We aim to provide athletes a worldwide platform and attract more fans to the stands. And I believe that’s what we’ve done in the past two years and will do again in season three. The opportunity, in my opinion, is much greater.
“For me and Stephen [Cook], who is our head of cricket, drafting these regulations and trying to maximise and keep all the teams equally competitive so that our franchises are able to attract some of the biggest players in the world,” Smith said when asked if he was proud of what he had accomplished with the SA20. People show up to see athletes, and the league is honest.
“Our goal is to ensure that six equally competitive teams are performing well and that people are aware of this and want to be a part of it.” We’ve been able to get it correct so far. It’s a crucial lesson as we strive to advance in our development.
Cook recalls accompanying Smith to Newlands on January 10, 2023, for the inaugural SA20 match between MI Cape Town and Paarl Royals. Due in great part to poor management, cricket in the nation was in a slump. There was no guarantee that this new league would help the game break out of its rut.
As Smith saw the stands fill up that day, he felt both comfort and awe. “They came!” he shouted as he turned toward Cook. Cook said, “They did!” as he was equally moved by the joyful sight.
They’ll probably keep coming. There will be a time of relaxation for Newlands and the other big grounds in South Africa. Not yet, though.
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