AB headlines new Mzansi league
AB de Villiers will headline SA’s first city-based Twenty20 league when he leads the Tshwane Spartans in the opening match of the Mzansi Super League against Cape Town Blitz on Friday.
The month-long league will get under way barely a month after the official launch, without a title sponsor and with a relatively modest list of international players, partly because some big-name players already had other commitments.
Cricket SA (CSA) has budgeted for a loss of R40m for the first edition of a tournament which was first mooted in 2017 before being abandoned in the absence of a television deal or main sponsor, leading to a loss of about $14m and the resignation of then CEO Haroon Lorgat.
The cash-strapped SABC will televise the tournament but it is unlikely CSA is receiving a substantial rights fee.
In addition to the absence of a title sponsor, none of the six teams has announced a major sponsor.
CSA is hoping international exposure will enable the league to rival the long-term success of similar tournaments in other countries, such as the Indian Premier League and Australia’s Big Bash League.
Marketing head, former Test player Clive Eksteen, said at a recent briefing that the matches would be broadcast in India, England, Australia, the US and the Caribbean.
Some international marquee players, like Afghanistan
leg-spinner Rashid Khan and England batsman Jason Roy, will be available only for the latter stages, having committed to a 10-overs league in Abu Dhabi.
SA’s leading one-day players will miss the opening matches because of a tour of Australia which finishes on Saturday.
But De Villiers is probably the biggest drawcard in SA cricket. His retirement from international cricket earlier in 2018 means the league will be his only appearances on SA fields this season.
Cape Town Blitz will be without captain Farhaan Behardien and Quinton de Kock, their SA marquee player, because they are in Australia.
But Dawid Malan, the SAeducated England batsman, showed he could be a worthwhile signing by scoring 85 off 54 balls in a warm-up match against the Paarl Rocks.
The league will be staged at a challenging time for SA cricket. With the economy in a poor state, CSA does not have sponsors for Test matches and two of the three main domestic competitions. There has also been a steady exodus of capable players from the country.
The six teams will play a home-and-away round-robin league, with the leading team going to the December 16 final against the winners of a playoff between the second- and thirdplace sides.