Last Updated on 3 years ago by Charbel Coorey
Cricket News: Franchise T20 leagues almost a non-negotiable in today’s cricket – Faf du Plessis | Faf du Plessis & David Miller chat SA20
Joburg Super Kings captain Faf du Plessis has spoken about the importance of the ongoing SA20 tournament for the future of South Africa cricket. In an interview with Betway, du Plessis said that the international players on show will help the development of the up-and-coming local talent.
“I think it’s almost a non-negotiable in today’s cricket [having a franchise tournament in South Africa],” he said. “It’s become such an important aspect of today’s T20 and the fact that we have a competition now that will pull all these international stars is tremendous.”
“It gives younger guys the opportunity to rub shoulders with the best players in the world, it will fast-track their learning and it will make the domestic system stronger.”
Important to make a bigger pool for the South Africa team – Faf du Plessis
South Africa are in a tricky position. Their batting in Test cricket has gone off a cliff, while there is a strong chance they will need to qualify for this year’s ODI World Cup via the Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe in June. Also, back in November, they suffered an embarrassing exit at the T20 World Cup at the hands of Netherlands, despite possessing excellent talent in their ranks.
When asked about the importance of SA20 in developing talent, du Plessis said that healthy competition is vital to having a strong national team.
“It’s really important. You want to try and make a bigger pool of cricketers available for the national team,” said the Joburg Super Kings captain.
“You need a healthy competition of players playing at a higher level, higher than the domestic game we currently have in South Africa. I think certainly for white-ball cricketers in this country, this is a huge moment.”
David Miller mirrored du Plessis’ thoughts. In his interview with Betway, Miller pointed to the development of youngsters as a key benefit of South Africa’s new league.
“You see what the other leagues do, and the way that local players are developing, and this is what we can do here,” Miller said.
“Playing with overseas players and all the Proteas’ international players can only benefit South Africa cricket. It’s going to be a great thing.”
As of January 25, Pretoria Captials sit atop the SA20 2023 table with five wins in seven matches. Faf du Plessis’ Joburg Super Kings are in fourth, and Faf himself is coming off a terrific century.
Miller’s Paarl Royals are in third.
A number of South Africa’s leading cricketers will play a three-match ODI series against England, starting on January 27.
