Cricket South Africa new six-team franchise-based T20 competition announced
Cricket In collaboration with SuperSport, South Africa has announced the establishment of a new six-team franchise-based T20 competition. The competition’s first edition is set to take place in January 2023, following South Africa’s tour of Australia. The event will take place in January for the following editions.
According to a press statement from the CSA, new six-team franchise-based T20 competition will include international players, with a player auction to be held at a later date. Each team will be allowed to use a maximum of four foreign players in their starting XI.
The new six-team franchise-based T20 competition will be managed by a new organization founded by CSA and SuperSport. According to the press release, “the corporation is aiming at a very attractive player compensation bill per team that will challenge other leagues across the world outside of the IPL.”
Six privately owned teams will compete in the new six-team franchise-based T20 competition, which will be played twice in a round-robin format before the top three teams advance to the playoffs. Over the course of three to four weeks, 33 matches will be contested.
“We are excited by the formation of something this fresh and invigorating, which also offers the opportunity for private investment into the franchises, CSA has already received interest from a number of potential local and international investors.”
CSA CEO Pholetsi Moseki
As Cricket South Africa’s local broadcast partner, SuperSport’s support for the league is critical to its success. CSA was unable to start the Global T20 League in 2017 due to their lack of support, and was forced to abandon plans for a franchise T20 league.
SuperSport maintained that they were entitled to broadcast the GLT20 because of their contractual commitment to broadcast all cricket played in South Africa, but the CSA disagreed, claiming that the tournament was new business. They were unable to find another broadcaster for the GLT20, and as a result, the tournament was never held.
Instead, in 2018, CSA formed the Mzansi Super League and licensed the broadcast to the SABC, the state broadcaster, for a little cost. The MSL consisted of eight clubs and lasted two years, with the CSA covering the entire cost of over R100 million every edition. It was not shown in 2020, 2021, or 2022, ostensibly due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but also due to CSA’s financial constraints. They may now start a T20 competition thanks to SuperSport’s investment.
Marc Jury, the CEO of SuperSport, said, “We are happy to invest in a product that will revolutionize the face of South African cricket.” “The timing is good because there is an early-year gap in the calendar.”
The new six-team franchise-based T20 competition is expected to inject more funds into cricket in South Africa, thereby helping the game grow in the country.