Third Betway SA20 player auction set to take centre stage on Tuesday

All the information you require on the player auction in Cape Town

Monday, September 30: As the six franchise clubs finalize their squads in preparation for the highly anticipated Season 3 that is set to begin on January 9, 2025, the third Betway SA20 player auction will take center stage in Cape Town on Tuesday.

It is anticipated that there would be intense competition to select some of the top local and international players on the list, as there are only 13 picks available in addition to the six Rookie draft picks. 

Star names that have entered the auction include Shamar Joseph, the fast bowling phenomenon from the West Indies; Jake Ball, Saqib Mahmood, Ollie Robinson, and Josh Hull, the England fast bowling quartet; Martin Guptill, the record-breaking opener for the Twenty20 Internationals from New Zealand; and the best homegrown talent and up-and-coming rookies.

"Every year, the auction is a thrilling occasion," stated Graeme Smith, the League Commissioner. "As a League, you put together all the player rules and structure to let the teams focus on their strengths, which is assembling elite teams. 

The group of players who have joined us this year is something we are extremely proud of. The teams will ultimately make that decision since they have scoured the globe and the market and have access to some of the greatest talent. It's critical that we develop a platform with balanced teams and context for every game. That's what makes the current squads so intriguing, and I'm excited to see how they're all put together.

An explanation of the auction process

Out of the 188 local and foreign players who have enrolled, 13 picks will be made.

The first round of the auction will feature five sets of players. Every one of the five specialized skills will have its own round.

1.    Batters

2.    Wicket-keepers

3.    Allrounders

4.    Fast bowlers

5.    Spin bowlers

There will be seven to ten participants every set, for a total of forty players.

A combination of overseas and South African players will participate in each set.

Should franchises still need players to complete their squads after the first 40 players are presented, an eXXpress round will start.

A list of players (from the remaining unsold players already submitted and the remaining players on the auction list) will be requested from the franchises.

After then, the players that the franchises have listed will go up for auction until teams have 17 players total.

There will be a final call for players, and those players will be presented, should the eXXpress round end with teams that are still unfinished.

The Auction portion will end when each team has 17 players, and then there will be a pause until the Rookie Draft starts.

Draft Rookie

The Rookie draft is back after its debut in Season 2.

A rookie player, defined as a South African athlete who is 22 years of age or younger on the auction date and has never had a contract with SA20 before, must be signed by each side in the draft. 89 players have signed up for the Rookie draft, which is scheduled to happen after the player auction.

Remaining purses for team salaries

Season 3's wage cap of R39.1 million will not change.

The remaining purse for each team is broken down below, along with the amount of players each club plans to target.

All teams must have a total of 19 players in their registered roster for Season 2.

The breakdown of this is as follows:

There are 17 "regular" squad members (pre-signings, retained players, and players chosen at auction), 1 Wildcard (who can sign before December 30, 2024, and can be a player from SA or outside; does not count toward salary cap), and 1 Rookie player (definition included below).

A maximum of 7 foreign players may be included in the regular squad (17 players).

South Africa or another country may be the wildcard.

A South African athlete who is 22 years of age or younger on the auction date and who has never had a contract with SA20 before is eligible to be the Rookie.

The Hammerman has returned.

Renowned auctioneer Richard "The Hammerman" Madley is returning to lead the player auction for Season 3, bringing his experience and distinctive approach to the table once more.

Madley was the driving force behind the first-ever SA20 auction held in front of Season 1 and spearheaded the storied Indian Premier League (IPL) player auctions for ten years.

With its creative production, SuperSport will provide all of the live coverage.

The legendary cricket players from SuperSport's dream team are returning to anchor the live broadcast from Cape Town. To ensure that viewers don't miss a second of the action, Ashwell Prince, Chris Morris, Mark Boucher, and Pommie Mbangwa will offer their professional thoughts and analysis.

Several of the biggest personalities in sports and entertainment content creation are joining the broadcast. Presenting live updates, exclusive interviews, and behind-the-scenes footage from the venue will be Kooks Sonkosi and Nqobile Khwezi.

Where to view

The auction will be broadcast live on SuperSport (Sub-Saharan Africa), Viacom (India) and Sky Sports (UK) from 16h15 SAST on 1 October. Keep up with the live coverage on all Betway SA20 social media channels.

Additionally, Betway SA20 Youtube Channel will livestream the program.