Season 2 of the hugely popular Betway SA20 cricket league kicked off on 10 January, and although the opener was rained out without a ball being bowled, this week all eyes are on Newlands cricket ground for the first match to be hosted in the Mother City this season.
Betway SA20 has proven to be one of the hottest tickets on the local cricket calendar, with six city-linked franchise teams made up of some of the world’s best cricketers taking to the field in the high-energy T20 format.
A player auction in 2023 saw team owners vie for the hottest talent, and this year’s line-up includes international superstars Jos Buttler, Rashid Khan, Moeen Ali and Nicholas Pooran, appearing alongside some of the best local players such as Quinton de Kock and Kagiso Rabada
'We have a jam-packed opening week of matches which will captivate fans around the country,' said league commissioner Graeme Smith. 'We have been intentional in giving fans an opportunity to watch as many matches as possible, with mid-week fixtures starting from 5.30pm and weekends providing prime summer-time viewing. It was fantastic to see all the fans come out in their numbers in Season 1, everyone can now start marking their calendars so they don’t miss out on the entertainment and quality cricket in Season 2.'
The first match in Cape Town – on 16 January – pits local heroes MI Cape Town against the defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape, and is sure to see a packed stadium. Expect DJs spinning the decks and fireworks when a ball soars over a boundary for 6.
And you’ll want to keep an eye out for those boundaries.
The popular Betway Catch R2 Million campaign returns to Season 2 of the tournament: any spectator that catches takes a one-handed direct catch off a six claims their share of a R2-million prize pot.
The catch must be a clean one-handed catch and the ball must not have touched anything more than the palm of the person who catches the ball. That means the ball cannot deflect off a hat, umbrella, another hand, shoulder chest, or be juggled either between hands or on one hand.
The Newlands opener is the first of seven games to be played in Cape Town this year, a roster that includes the tournament final, which rolls into Newlands on 10 February 2024.
Visit www.sa20.co.za for more info and to book tickets.
Looking for more things to do? Check out our guide to Summer Events in Cape Town!