Ken Borland

In the first two editions of the Mzansi Super League (MSL), feted cricketers like AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle have been marquee players allocated to one of the teams but that is all set to change, along with many other aspects, in this year’s T20 carnival.

The third instalment of the MSL will see only eight CSA-contracted players allocated to teams. The plan is for each of the eight franchises to then be able to choose one Kolpak or non-contracted South African and one overseas player from the draft.

In that way the MSL draft will become a much more exciting extravaganza with the eight teams competing for some truly top-class attractions. It means someone like De Villiers, who is a non-contracted player, will no longer be allocated to the Tshwane team but will no doubt cause something akin to a bidding war amongst the eight teams as he will be available on the draft. And there will also be much jostling for international players, who have been of mixed quality over the first two seasons.

Quinton de Kock, formerly of the Cape Town Blitz, has been mooted as the new marquee player for the Centurion-based side.

The other change will be in the names of the teams. The six domestic franchises will now be able to choose whether to continue with their MSL brands or revert back to their own names – i.e. Cobras, Dolphins, Knights, Lions, Titans and Warriors.

It means cheesy names like the Tshwane Spartans, which have developed little traction with fans (what are Spartans anyway?), will be ditched.

Franchises will also be able to source their own sponsors and will share in whatever profits the tournament makes.

A new broadcast deal has yet to be signed for MSL III, but CSA are known to have offered the rights to SuperSport. The first two editions of the MSL were broadcast for free by the SABC, contributing to the massive losses the tournament made.

If anyone has their finger on the pulse of the future direction of cricket it is former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum and Joburg Giants Proteas marquee player Kagiso Rabada is really looking forward to tapping into his knowledge when the T20 Global League gets underway.

McCullum was snapped up by the Johannesburg franchise as the second pick in the draft for international marquee players, providing the tantalising prospect of a batsman and captain who did much to reinvent the game teaming up with a young fast bowler who is tipped to become one of the greats.

“As captain of New Zealand he was a really positive influence with the way he was able to lead a young side. He’s a very experienced campaigner who does not play by the book, the way he approached his cricket was very interesting and it shows he does not just conform to the boxes people impose.

“He questions all the strategies of the game, which is a really good thing. And he can certainly give me insights on what balls are hard or easy to hit, so I’m looking forward to tapping into his experience and picking his brain. He has dominated a lot of bowlers so it will be interesting to hear from him where batsmen can’t score,” Rabada told The Citizen on Saturday night.

West Indian all-rounder Kieron Pollard was the first pick of the evening and will be playing for the Bloemfontein City Blazers, while his compatriot, Chris Gayle, will turn out for the Cape Town Knight Riders.

The Durban Qalandars plumped for England limited-overs captain Eoin Morgan, while another West Indian star, Dwayne Bravo, will be plying his all-round skills for the Pretoria Mavericks.

“It’s fantastic to have Dwayne, he will bring a winning mentality having played in T20 World Cup and IPL winning sides, he can contribute with both bat and ball and all the players who have played with him previously speak very highly of him, so I’m really excited to have him in our team,” Mavericks coach Russell Domingo said.

“It’s great to have one banker at six or seven plus he can bowl four overs under pressure and then we have AB de Villiers at four. And Dwayne has great death bowling skills which is of paramount importance, particularly at Centurion.”

The other international marquee placements saw Englishman Jason Roy joining fellow opener Quinton de Kock at the Benoni Zalmi, Kevin Pietersen heading to Port Elizabeth to join his mate Mark Boucher’s Nelson Mandela Bay Stars side and Sri Lankan pace bowler Lasith Malinga playing for Faf du Plessis’ Stellenbosch Monarchs.

https://citizen.co.za/sport/south-africa-sport/sa-cricket-sport/1629151/kagiso-rabada-cant-wait-to-learn-from-a-new-zealand-legend/