The third edition of the SA20 will get underway from January 9 with defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape vying for their third title. Here's Wisden's pick of the betting odds for the season.
The tournament, which came into being in 2022, has become a priority in South Africa’s cricketing calendar. As a result, during the last edition, the Proteas toured New Zealand for a Test series with as many as seven uncapped players due to the regulars’ commitment to the league.
Like the last two years, six teams owned by IPL franchises will be vying for the title. They are: Durban's Super Giants, Joburg Super Kings, MI Cape Town, Paarl Royals, Pretoria Capitals, and Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
This year’s season opener will see the Eastern Cape, winners of the first two editions, taking on MI Cape Town in Gqeberha. After a month of riveting contests, the tournament ends on February 8.
The sides will play each other in a double round-robin format, with the top four progressing to the playoffs, in the mould of IPL. The top two teams will get a chance to play Qualifier 1, with the winners heading to the final. The third and fourth-ranked sides will play the Eliminator with the losers going out of contention. The winners of the Eliminator will play the losers of Qualifier 1 to determine the second finalists.
Who will win SA20 2025?
The Eastern Cape and Durban Super Giants were the top two performing teams last year, finishing the group stage with seven wins. Eastern Cape ended as the table toppers owing to an extra point from the abandoned curtain raiser against Joburg Super Kings.
In the summit clash between them, the Eastern Cape racked up 204-3 before skittling the Super Giants to 115 in 17 overs to win their second title on the trot.
Read more: SA20 2025 squads: Full team lists and injury replacements for each SA20 side
The latest auction saw some big names being added to the tournament. Trent Boult will be joining MI Cape Town, having already played for MI’s sister franchises in other global leagues.
For Kane Williamson and Devon Conway, this will also be their first stint in the tournament. Williamson has been signed up by the Super Giants, while Conway will reunite with coach Stephen Fleming at Joburg Super Kings, having won the IPL under him with CSK.
Some of the notable English debutants to look for are Joe Root (Paarl Royals), Chris Woakes (Durban Super Giants) as well as opening batter Zak Crawley (Sunrisers Eastern Cape). Ben Stokes, who was set to play for MI Cape Town, has been ruled out due to a hamstring injury.
T20 World Cup winner Dinesh Karthik is set to play for the Royals, becoming the first Indian to feature in the tournament.
Despite the Eastern Cape winning the last two seasons, Stake is offering a return of 5.50 on their victory. The Capitals and MI, each priced at 4.50 are the joint favourites to win the title.
According to Batery, the current titleholders have the odds against them in the campaign opener against MI. They are priced at 2.00 on Batery, compared to MI's 1.82.
Are there any long punts worth taking?
Paarl Royals are one of the dark horses this season. Though the odds on Stake, priced at 8.00, are heavily against their favour of becoming champions, the additions of some key international stars have bolstered their team composition.
Before the auction, the Royals signed up six players, five pre-signings and one traded, including Karthik, Root, and Afghanistan's Mujeeb Ur Rahman, among others.
Having made it to the playoffs on both occasions, the Royals can give others a run for their money this season.
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