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The third edition of the SA20 explodes into action on Thursday when defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape host MI Cape Town in a blockbuster clash at St George’s Park in Gqeberha.
The cricketing extravaganza was launched in Cape Town on Wednesday with all the captains in attendance and giving their opinions on what to expect over the next four weeks of high-octane cricket.
The opening days will be hectic, with Durban’s Super Giants hosting Pretoria Capitals on Friday followed by a double-header on Saturday when Paarl Royals play the Sunrisers in Paarl and Joburg Super Kings entertain MICT at the Wanderers, while the Capitals welcome the Super Giants on Sunday.
The men in orange had the rub of the green against the Cape Town side in the first two editions of the tournament, the Gqeberha side emerging victorious in their last four encounters by narrow margins.
MICT will be aiming to improve on their sixth-place finish in the last two editions, while the Sunrisers, who finished third with four group stage wins in season one, ended as group stage winners with seven wins from their 10 group encounters in 2024.
Sunrisers skipper Aiden Markram said though they had two titles in the bag, the hunger to win another crown was as strong as before.
“It’s nice to be used in the same sentence as the Bokke, but I don’t think we are there just yet,” Markram said when his side was dubbed the “Springboks of the Betway SA20” at the media briefing.
“We are definitely still pumped to try to get a third one this year. No guarantees, but it is a hugely competitive tournament.
“So hopefully in a month, something cool can happen [but for now] we are just looking forward to the cricket we are going to play.”
Apart from the players and their roles in the group, Markram said another secret to their success was head coach Adrian Birrell, a well-travelled individual with decades of coaching and trophy-winning experience.
“He is just a great man; he gets the boys together and keeps things really simple. We try to create a month in which the guys just enjoy themselves.
“[They] compete like hell on the field, enjoy your time on the park, but it’s also important to enjoy your time off the park.
“The first two years have been great, [we’ve had a] great bunch of guys, and Adi Birrell is just a gem of a person,” the skipper said.
Meanwhile, MICT captain Rashid Khan said some match results from the past two seasons were not a true reflection of their performances, as they played some great cricket in both editions.
“This is a fresh year, so the mind is fresh and there are some fresh faces in the team.
“So, we are looking forward to the new challenges and hopefully this year won’t be the same as the last two.”
Having led a franchise for the first time in the first edition of the SA20, Khan said: “It was a different experience for me.
“I have learnt so much. Maybe if I did something different, there would be a different result, but you always learn from your mistakes.
“It was the first year. We had some great games. But we could not control our nerves in the pressure time and would go on to lose matches in that position.
“We just need to do the basics right, have fun and make sure to give 100% to get the right result.”
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