Franchise Cricket

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Sunrisers Eastern Cape continued their winning start to this year's SA20 with a commanding 48-run win over Pretoria Capitals.

After electing to bat first, the Sunrisers posted 188-6 thanks to opener Quinton de Kock's 77 off 47 balls and fellow South Africa international Matthew Breetzke striking 52 off 33.

England's Jonny Bairstow was bowled by South Africa fast bowler Lungi Ngidi for two, but De Kock and Breetzke combined for a partnership for 116.

The hosts' scoring slowed after both were dismissed in quick succession at Dafabet St George's Park in Gqeberha but Jordan Hermann's 37 off 20 led them to a challenging total.

In reply, English batter Will Smeed made 35 off 27 and West Indies wicketkeeper Shai Hope hit 36 off 19.

But the Capitals were undone by New Zealand fast bowler Adam Milne, who took 4-25, and the visitors were bowled out for 140 off 18 overs.

It is a second straight convincing win for the Sunrisers, having opened their campaign with a thumping 137-run victory over Paarl Royals, who were dismissed for a SA20 record low score of 49.

The Sunrisers are top of the six-team table, while the Capitals are fifth, having lost both their matches so far.

• SA20 fixtures & table

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Former Australia wicketkeeper Matthew Wade hit 43 not out from 20 balls to lead Hobart Hurricanes to victory over Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash.

Hurricanes needed 69 from 45 balls with five wickets left in pursuit of 163 before Wade shared a partnership of 38 with England leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed.

Ahmed holed out at deep extra cover for 23 in the 17th over but from there Wade hit three sixes and a four to seal victory with an over to spare.

It denied Australia leg-spinner Adam Zampa, who took 3-25 to reduce Hurricanes to 94-5.

Hurricanes, who move level on points with leaders Melbourne Stars as they look to defend their title, also did well to restrict Renegades after a fast start.

The visitors reached 95-3 inside nine overs but only ended up making 162-9. Seamer Nathan Ellis took 3-30 and Ahmed a useful 0-21 from three overs.

Renegades remain bottom of the table with one win from three games.

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Phil Salt and Michael Pepper deliciously combined to guide Abu Dhabi Knight Riders into the International League T20 knockouts with a 32-run win over Gulf Giants.

The pair put on 131 in 15 overs for the opening wicket as Knight Riders posted 179-1 after being asked to bat first.

Pepper made 83 off 51 balls, while Salt finished unbeaten on 72 off 56 balls.

Giants, who would have progressed instead with a win, were always struggling in reply, slipping to 29-3 with West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder taking two early wickets.

Former England all-rounder Moeen Ali gave them slight hope with 78 off 49 balls but their chances were ended when he was dismissed by Andre Russell in the 18th over.

Russell went on to claim two other wickets and finished with 3-13 from two overs as Capitals ended on 147-9.

The win seals the final play-off spot for Knight Riders, who will face Dubai Capitals in Thursday's Eliminator.

The winner of that game will then play in the second qualifier for a place in the final.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

ILT20 knockout schedule

30 December - Qualifier 1: Desert Vipers v MI Emirates (14:30 GMT)

1 January - Eliminator: Dubai Capitals v Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (14:30 GMT)

2 January - Qualifier 2: Loser of Qualifier 1 v winner of Eliminator (14:30 GMT)

4 January - final: Winner of Qualifier 1 v winner of Qualifier 2 (14:30 GMT)

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Melbourne Stars continued their winning start to this year's Big Bash with a comprehensive nine-wicket victory over Sydney Thunder in Canberra.

Stars, who now have four wins from four as they chase a long-awaited first BBL title, took wickets throughout to impressively dismiss Thunder for 128.

Pakistan quick Haris Rauf took 3-29 while Mitchell Swepson, Marcus Stoinis and England and Surrey bowler Tom Curran all claimed two wickets.

David Warner made 10 from 12 balls and England's Sam Billings 23 from 19, with Pakistan all-rounder Shadab Khan (25) Thunder's highest score.

Nottinghamshire batter Joe Clarke struck a 37-ball 60 as opener in Stars' chase and they completed victory with six overs to spare.

Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell also hit 39 not out from 20 balls.

The win moves Stars two points clear of second-placed Hobart Hurricanes at the top of the table. Thunder are one of five teams with only two points.

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Paarl Royals were bowled out for an SA20 record low score of 49 as Sunrisers Eastern Cape started their campaign with a thumping 137-run victory.

Royals' total beat the 52 that Pretoria Capitals were dismissed for by Sunrisers in the 2024 tournament.

England Lions batter Asa Tribe top-scored with 14 off 10 balls, while South Africa wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne (11) was the only other batter to make double figures.

Royals were chasing 187 but were put under immediate pressure from Sunrisers' pace trio of Marco Jansen, Adam Milne and Anrich Nortje.

They picked up 7-35 between them, with Nortje the pick with 4-13 from three overs.

Earlier, Sunrisers' total of 186-4 was built of an opening stand of 66 between Quinton de Kock (42 off 24) and Jonny Bairstow (31 off 33).

They were dismissed in quick succession, alongside Jansen, to leave Sunrisers 89-3 but Matthew Breetzke (31 off 23) and Jordan Hermann (62 not out off 28) put on 73 for the fourth wicket.

The margin of victory sees Sunrisers become the first team to earn a bonus point this season, meaning they top the early table.

• SA20 fixtures & table

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MI Emirates beat Dubai Capitals by eight wickets to secure second spot in the International League T20 table and with it two chances to reach the final on 4 January.

Chasing 123, Muhammad Waseem and Andre Fletcher put on 47 for the opening wicket.

The former was trapped lbw by Haider Ali in the seventh over, before Fletcher was run out in the 10th to leave MI 59-2.

However captain Kieron Pollard (44* off 31) and England's Tom Banton (28* off 20) get them over the line with 20 balls to spare.

Pollard's innings leaves him 143 runs adrift of Chris Gayle's record tally of 14,562 in T20 matches.

They will face table-toppers Desert Vipers in Qualifier 1 on 30 December, with the winner reaching the final. The loser will have a second chance in Qualifier 2 on 2 January.

Capitals, who posted 122-8 in their 20 overs, finish third and will play in the Eliminator on 1 January. A win puts them into Qualifier 2 the following day, but a defeat would knock them out.

Their opponents in the Eliminator will be decided in the final group game between Gulf Giants and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders on Sunday.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Duan Jansen claimed 4-23 as Joburg Super Kings beat Pretoria Capitals by 22 runs in the SA20.

Capitals won the toss and elected to field first and Super Kings posted 168-6 with Rilee Rossouw top-scoring with 48 off 33 balls.

He shared 78 for the third wicket with Wiaan Mulder (43 off 28) after the pair came together at 16-2.

Super Kings were 110-4 after 13.5 overs when Mulder joined Rossouw in being dismissed, but West Indies spinner Akeal Hosein gave the innings some late momentum with an unbeaten 22 off 10 balls.

Capitals made a good start to their chase of 169 with Somerset's Will Smeed and Bryce Parsons putting on 71 for the first wicket.

However when Smeed was bowled by Hosein from the final ball of the ninth over a collapse followed.

Capitals were soon 89-5 with both openers, Shai Hope, Dewald Brevis and Connor Esterhuizen all dismissed.

Jansen accounted for three of those wickets and also removed Daniel Smith in the 17th over as Super Kings squeezed Capitals and eventually closed out a comfortable win.

• SA20 fixtures & table

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Adelaide Strikers captain Matt Short's efforts with bat and ball were in vain as his side suffered a seven-run defeat by Brisbane Heat in the Big Bash.

Short had finished the pick of the bowlers for the Strikers at the Gabba with 2-13 as he helped restrict Heat to 179-9 from their 20 overs.

Max Bryant top-scored for the Heat, smashing four sixes and four fours in a 32-ball knock of 63.

Matthew Renshaw chipped in with a useful 33 off 22 balls as Luke Wood and Hassan Ali claimed 2-43 and 2-36 respectively.

Short then spearheaded the Strikers' reply with a brisk 63 of 39 balls which featured five fours and two sixes.

When Short fell to Xavier Bartlett - who took 3-26 - the Strikers needed 24 off 16 balls with four wickets in hand but their innings lost momentum.

Jerrssis Wadia whacked 35 off 16 balls but Thomas Balkin (2-30) kept his cool at the death as Heat took the last five wickets for just 16 runs.

The win was Heat's second of the campaign and they move up to third place on four points while the Strikers are seventh on two.

• Big Bash League fixtures & table

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Ryan Rickelton's 113 was not enough as defending champions MI Cape Town fell short in a record SA20 chase to suffer a 15-run defeat by Durban's Super Giants in the season opener.

Chasing 233, Rickelton crashed five fours and 11 sixes in his 63-ball knock from the top of the order, before he was dismissed by Eathan Bosch (4-46) at the start of the final over.

His score of 113 is the joint-second highest in the tournament's history, just short of Kyle Verreynne's record 116 not out in 2024.

He was supported by 28 from Reeza Hendricks and 41 from Jason Smith, but despite posting a record second-innings score in the tournament Cape Town fell short.

Earlier, after winning the toss and opting to bat, Super Giants posted 232-5 - the fourth-highest total in the competition.

New Zealand duo Devon Conway (64 off 33) and Kane Williamson (40 off 25) shared 96 for the opening wicket.

There were also contributions from Jos Buttler (20 off 12), Heinrich Klaasen (22 off 14), Aiden Markram (35 off 17) and an unbeaten 33 off 14 balls for Evan Jones.

George Linde was the pick of the Cape Town bowlers, claiming 2-46, but Rashid Khan struggled, going for a wicketless 44 from his four overs.

• SA20 fixtures & table

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Sharjah Warriorz had their play-off hopes ended as Max Holden's unbeaten 66 gave Desert Vipers a five-wicket win in the International League T20.

Chasing 141, Holden hit nine fours and one six to gets Vipers over the line with three balls to spare.

It was a recovery from Vipers who were 9-2 and sealed an eighth win from their 10 group-stage matches.

Warriorz, who finish with three wins from 10 games, posted 140-7 with West Indies batter Johnson Charles top-scoring with 43 off 37 at the top of the order. Pakistan's Naseem Shah was the pick of the Vipers bowlers, picking up 3-35.

The result leaves Gulf Giants and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders competing for the final play-off spot, with the two sides meeting on Sunday.

Saturday's game between MI Emirates and Dubai Capitals will decide who finishes second and has two chances to reach the final on 4 January.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Defending champions Hobart Hurricanes edged to a four-wicket win over Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League.

Defending champions Hurricanes were chasing 151, but slipped to 39-3 before Tim David crashed 42 off 28 balls in a stand of 63 with Nikhil Chaudhary (34 off 30).

However, David had to retire hurt with an apparent hamstring injury that will cause concern to Hurricanes for the rest of the tournament and Australia with February's T20 World Cup in mind.

Hurricanes needed 48 off 33 balls when David retired and then lost England all-rounder Rehan Ahmed for seven.

They required 31 from the final three overs and Macalister Wright (22 not out) shared 35 in 18 balls with Chris Jordan (15).

Jordan was dismissed with two required but captain Nathan Ellis came to the crease and hit his first ball for four to seal the win.

Scorchers posted 150-8 from their 20 overs with New Zealand's Finn Allen making 43 off 23 balls, while Bangladesh's Rishad Hossain claimed 3-33.

The win sees Hurricanes join leaders Melbourne Stars on six points, while Scorchers are fourth despite a second successive defeat.

• Big Bash League fixtures & table

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Sam Harper clubbed a maiden domestic T20 century as Melbourne Stars cruised to a seven-wicket win over Sydney Sixers to maintain their 100% record in the Big Bash.

The Stars won the toss and their decision to bowl first paid off after they restricted the Sixers to a total of 144 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Tom Curran finished with 3-26 - including the wicket of Pakistan opener Babar Azam for just two - while evergreen seamer Peter Siddle claimed 3-23.

Daniel Hughes top-scored for the Sixers with a 42-ball 60 but when he was dismissed by Curran, they stumbled from 90-2 at the start of the 12th over to a modest total.

The Stars lost opener Joe Clarke for a duck to Sean Abbott, but a 54-run stand for the second wicket between Campbell Kellaway and Harper gave the chase momentum.

Harper was the main aggressor as he brought up his half-century off 28 balls then went up through the gears.

The 29-year-old wicketkeeper-batter reached three figures for the first time in domestic T20 cricket, eclipsing his previous best of 89 for Melbourne Renegades in 2023, off 50 balls.

Left-arm spinner Joel Davies removed Kellaway and Jonathan Merlo, both for 14, en route to 2-16, but Harper got the Sixers over the line with 15 balls to spare.

Harper finished unbeaten on 110 off 60 balls in an innings which featured 12 fours and six sixes.

The Stars have now won all three of their games and sit top of the BBL standings on six points while the Sixers are fourth.

• Big Bash League fixtures & table

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The SA20, South Africa's franchise T20 league, returns on Friday, 26 December for its fourth edition.

The tournament, which was established in 2022, is South Africa's equivalent of the Big Bash or Indian Premier League and features some of South Africa's and the world's biggest cricketing names.

It has been brought forward by a few weeks this year because of February's T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.

There are six teams involved, with all of them owned by IPL franchises. The teams are: Durban's Super Giants, Joburg Super Kings, MI Cape Town, Paarl Royals, Pretoria Capitals, Sunrisers Eastern Cape.

The tournament begins with defending champions MI Cape Town against Durban's Super Giants in Cape Town. It runs for four weeks and concludes on Sunday, 25 January.

The teams will play each other twice in the group stage, with the top four progressing to the play-offs. They work as follows:

21 January: Qualifier 1 - first v second

22 January: Eliminator - third v fourth

23 January: Qualifier 2 - loser of Qualifier 1 v winner of Eliminator

25 January: Final - winner of Qualifier 1 v winner of Qualifier 2

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Former captain Jos Buttler is the star English name in the fourth edition of the SA20.

Buttler will play for Durban's Super Giants, having previously scored 799 runs in two seasons for Paarl Royals.

Top-order batter Jonny Bairstow has moved to Sunrisers Eastern Cape - a franchise he has represented in the Indian Premier League - from Joburg Super Kings.

Batter Jordan Cox will hope to push his case to be included in February's T20 World Cup squad after signing as a replacement for Pretoria Capitals.

Other names hoping to boost their profile are Somerset's Thomas Rew and Will Smeed.

All-rounder Will Jacks and pace bowlers Saqib Mahmood and Craig Overton have all had to pull out of spells with the Capitals.

England-qualified players in the SA 2026

Durban's Super Giants: Jos Buttler

Joburg Super Kings: Richard Gleeson, James Vince, Reece Topley, Dan Worrall

MI Cape Town: Tom Moores

Paaral Royals: Dan Lawrence, Thomas Rew

Pretoria Capitals: Jordan Cox, Tymal Mills, Will Smeed

Sunrisers Eastern Cape: Jonny Bairstow, James Coles, Chris Wood, Lewis Gregory

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Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, New Zealand's Kane Williamson and West Indies duo Andre Russell and Nicholas Pooran are among the overseas stars signed up to play in the fourth edition of the SA20.

Spin bowler Rashid Khan is at MI Emirates alongside batter Pooran, who has left MI Emirates in the International League T20 to join up for the start of the tournament.

Batter Williamson is at Durban's Super Giants alongside compatriot Devon Conway, while all-rounder Russell is at Pretoria Capitals.

Other overseas names include pace bowler Adam Milne (Sunrisers Eastern Cape), Noor Ahmad (Super Giants) and Akeal Hosein (Joburg Super Kings).

All of South Africa's key white-ball players are involved, but there is no contract for Test captain Temba Bavuma again.

All six sides are captained by Proteas players: Aiden Markram (Durban's Super Giants), Faf du Plessis (Joburg Super Kings), Kagiso Rabada (MI Cape Town), David Miller (Paarl Royals), Keshav Maharaj (Pretoria Capitals) and Tristan Stubbs (Sunrisers Eastern Cape).

Other big names include Heinrich Klaasen at Super Giants, Donovan Ferreira at Super Kings, Lhuan-dre Pretorius at Royals and Quinton de Kock at Sunrisers.

Selected overseas and South African players at SA20 (non-England):

Durban's Super Giants: Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, Kane Williamson, Noor Ahmad, Sunil Narine, Kwena Maphaka, Devon Conway, Gerald Coetzee, David Bedingham, Tony De Zorzi, David Wiese, Kane Williamson.

Joburg Super Kings: Faf du Plessis, Akeal Hosein, Donovan Ferreira, Nandre Burger, Brandon King, Rilee Rossouw, Imran Tahir.

MI Cape Town: Kagiso Rabada, Rashid Khan, Nicholas Pooran, Trent Boult, Corbin Bosch, Rassie van der Dussen, Ryan Rickelton, Dwaine Pretorius, Tabraiz Shamsi.

Paaral Royals: David Miller, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Sikandar Raza, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Gudakesh Motie.

Pretoria Capitals: Keshav Maharaj, Andre Russell, Sherfane Rutherford, Lungi Ngidi, Dewald Brevis, Shai Hope.

Sunrisers Eastern Cape: Tristan Stubbs, Adam Milne, Marco Jansen, Quinton de Kock, Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamla, Matthew Breetzke.

Image source, ILT20

England's Jordan Cox made an unbeaten 61 to guide defending champions Dubai Capitals into the International League T20 play-offs with a six-wicket win over Sharjah Warriorz.

Cox hit six fours and one six in his 50-ball innings as Capitals chased 135 with five balls to spare.

He was supported by opener Shayan Jahangir, who made an 51 off 39 balls.

Jahangir and Mohammad Nabi were dismissed by Sikandar Raza, before Leus du Plooy fell cheaply to leave Capitals 114-4 in the 18th over but Cox took over and got his side over the line.

Warriorz, who are now in a three-way battle for the final play-off spot, posted 134-8 from their 20 overs with West Indies batter Johnson Charles top-scoring with 43.

They will battle with Gulf Giants and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders for the fourth play-off place, while Capitals could yet finish second and have two chances to reach the final on 4 January.

• ILT20 fixtures & table