Pietersen takes on former home town in T20 opener
KEVIN Pietersen will be up against his former home town when Nelson Mandela Bay Stars open their T20 Global League campaign with an away fixture against the Durban Qalanders on November 4.
Global star Pietersen, who grew up in Durban before moving on to pursue what would become a glittering career in England, will spearhead NMB Stars’ quest to start the tournament with a victory.
Doing their utmost to prevent that will be a home team led by the likes of Hashim Amla, Eion Morgan, Chris Morris, Mohammad Hafeez and Fakhar Zaman.
Mark Boucher’s team will then fly back to Port Elizabeth for their first home game on November 6 against the Joburg Giants in what will be a 6.30pm start at St George’s Park.
The team face an arduous schedule up front as they play four games in the first week, but will then be able to take stock for the second week before playing their fifth match.
The T20 Global League directors unveiled the fixtures in Cape Town yesterday.
The tournament starts with a north-south derby between the Cape Town Knight Riders and the Pretoria Mavericks at Newlands on Friday, November 3.
This will be followed by two double-headers on the Saturday and Sunday.
In all, five venues will host the opening weekend of matches, which will see all eight franchises in action.
There will be double-headers every weekend as well as several in midweek as the League holds 57 matches in the space of 44 action-packed days.
There will be no eliminator match, with the two top teams after the round-robin contesting the final in Johannesburg on December 16.
“There is quite literally going to be non-stop action of the highest international quality from the league opener on November 3 right through to the final on December 16,” tournament director Russell Adams said.
“South African sport has never experienced anything quite like this before and I am absolutely confident that the T20 Global League will take the sport entertainment industry in this country to a new level.”
NMB Stars’ fixtures are: November Sat, 4: v Durban Qalanders (6.30pm, away) Monday, 6: v Joburg Giants (6.30pm, home) Wednesday, 8: v Bloem City Blazers (6.30pm, home) Saturday, 11: v Benoni Zalmi (6.30pm, home) Saturday, 18: v CT Knight Riders (2.30pm, away) Wednesday, 22: v Stellenbosch Monarchs (2.30pm, home) Friday, 24: v Bloem City Blazers (2.30pm, away) Sunday, 26: v Pretoria Mavericks (6.30pm, home) Wednesday, 29: v Pretoria Mavericks (2.30pm, away) December Sunday, 3: v Durban Qalanders (6.30pm, home) Tuesday, 5: v Joburg Giants (6.30pm, away) Thursday, 7: v Benoni Zalmi (6.30pm, away) Saturday, 9: v Stellenbosch Monarchs (6.30pm, away) Tuesday, 12: v CT Knight Riders (6.30pm, home) ý The full match schedule can be found on the #T20GL social media platforms and at www.t20.gl