SA20 Confident of Staying Top Outside IPL Despite BBL’s Ambitions, Says Smith

SA20 commissioner Graeme Smith said the organisers are confident the league has built a strong base and won’t be shaken by the Big Bash League’s push to be the world’s second-biggest tournament after the IPL.

SA20 Aims to Be the Top League Outside IPL

The SA20, which will begin its fourth season on Boxing Day this year and has IPL ownership across all six franchises, has the second-highest salary cap after the IPL of R41 million (US$2.31 million). By that measure, it could be regarded as the next-best league in the global game and with a marquee auction scheduled for September 9, Smith explained they plan to stay that way.

"When we started we were built up against the ILT20 and Big Bash and we set ourselves big ambitions upfront. In the southern hemisphere window we want to dominate and we want to be the biggest league outside the IPL. Three years in, we've set the standard. Every decision we make is around making sure that we uphold those standards. I expect there will be a top number of leagues that will elevate themselves in a calendar cycle and that will be the priority for players, investors and fans. Our ambitions are to remain right at the top of that alongside IPL," Smith told ESPNcricinfo ahead of the closing of player registration for the auction.

CA Eyes Privatisation to Become World's Second-Biggest Cricket League

Smith’s remarks came just days after CA chief Todd Greenberg said on SEN radio that his board would openly push to become the world’s second-biggest league by looking into privatisation.

"It's going to be very hard to chase the IPL, given the scale of cricket in India, but unashamedly, we want to run a league that comes second. And to do that we're going to need to make sure that player availability and player salaries are commensurate with everything else that goes on around the world, and there's one thing you need for that, you need money, you need investment. We'd be naive if we weren't asking ourselves these questions and making sure we've got an eye on what's next," Greenberg said.

BBL Seeks Private Investment While SA20 Strengthens Its Player Focus

The BBL’s decision to seek private investment makes it the last of the major leagues to look for funding beyond its board. The Hundred recently did something similar, already finalizing deals for six of its eight teams ahead of next season. While what happens in The Hundred doesn’t impact the SA20 because they’re played at different times, the BBL does overlap with the SA20. This could lead to conflicts over league status and, importantly, player availability.

Smith had good reason to be confident. The BBL runs at the same time as Australia’s international summer, so Test players aren’t fully available. In contrast, all South African national and domestic players will focus on the SA20, even if it means missing international matches. Last year, South Africa sent a weaker Test team to New Zealand, which drew some criticism. But when they went on to win the World Test Championship final, Smith saw it as proof that different formats can work together if planned well.

"Everyone was worried that we were going to destroy Test cricket but we've seen our national team go on a few years later to win the World Test Championship final. We've all played our role in the ecosystem. We've been part of bringing gravitas back to South African cricket, seeing new fans come back to the game and new energy," he said.

SA20 Will Still Have Some International Players

The SA20 also draws international players, and last year, several English Test stars, enjoying their winter break, played in the tournament. This season might be different with the Ashes happening, but Smith still expects a solid group of overseas players to take part.

"In the first two seasons we saw a lot of the England white-ball players come through and then with the FTP ebbing and flowing every year that changes. So this year with the Ashes, we see some of those white ball players come back and maybe the Test players won't form part of this season. The Ashes finishes on the ninth (of January, 2026). I don't know if some of their players will form part of replacement lists but we've seen the likes of a Jos Butler come back into the tournament this year as an example," he said.

Buttler Joins Durban, SA20 Auction Set for September 9

Buttler, who played for the Paarl Royals in the first two seasons, has already been signed by the Durban's Super Giants for the fourth season. Each team could keep or pre-sign up to six players before the new season started. Out of 36 available spots, only 13 have gone to South African players. Smith thinks this will make the upcoming auction very exciting.

"I expected a lot more top South African players to pre-sign and that didn't happen. From our perspective it's set up a very exciting auction with a very big purse," he said.

The fourth season of the SA20 will take place over the festive season since South Africa won’t be hosting any home Test matches this summer. None of the matches will be played on the new drop-in pitches planned for the 2027 ODI World Cup. However, Smith hopes that with less cricket being played this season, the pitches will have a bit more bounce and energy compared to last year, when they were starting to show signs of wear.

"The pitches last year didn't play as well as we would have liked and it's something that's being worked on in terms of revamping stadiums and facilities ahead of the World Cup. We're working closely with Cricket South Africa in terms of improving the quality of stadiums, lights and pitches. Everything is a big work in progress behind the scenes," he said.

The SA20 auction will take place in Johannesburg on September 9. Player registration for the auction closes on Monday, August 18.

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