SA20 Season 3: Opening game at St George’s Park, final at the Wanderers

The third edition of the SA20 cricket competition will get under way on January 9 next year, with the final scheduled for February 8 at the Wanderers.

The organisers have also announced that the opening game will be played at St George’s Park in Gqeberha for the first time, when the two-time winners and defending champions, the Sunrisers Eastern Cape take on MI Cape Town.

The Sunrisers, who are led by Aiden Markram, will be gunning for a hat trick of titles, but MI Cape Town, who’ve added England’s Ben Stokes to their squad, will be keen to finally make an impression in South Africa’s biggest T20 competition.

Among the other big-name players who’ll be in action in the 2025 competition are Anrich Nortje, who missed the entire 2024 season earlier this year due to injury, and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson and Trent Boult.

New Proteas star and former SA U20 player Kwena Maphaka will also be a player to keep an eye on as he’ll turn out for the Paarl Royals, who’s also brought in the experienced Dinesh Karthik and Joe Root.

Another new face in the mix in 2025 will be former Lions player and now a New Zealand Black Caps star, opening batter Deon Conway, who’ll return to the Wanderers and the Joburg Super Kings.

Format

Season 3 has retained the same playoff structure of season 2, but this time around the matches will be played at three venues, spreading the business end of the tournament to more fans than season 1 and 2; with a Qualifier 1, Eliminator and a Qualifier 2 setting up the road to the Final.

The top two teams will play each other in Qualifier 1, followed by the Eliminator between the third and fourth-placed teams. The loser of Qualifier 1 and the winner of the Eliminator will battle it out in Qualifier 2, for a chance to book their place in the Final, against the winner of Qualifier 1.

St George’s Park in Gqeberha will host Qualifier 1, while Centurion will stage both the Eliminator and Qualifier 2.

And after hosting the inaugural SA20 showpiece, the grand finale will once again return to the Wanderers in season 3 on February 8.

“Season 3 is set to be bigger and better, with a fantastic lineup of matches that will captivate our fans,” said competition commissioner Graeme Smith.

“We’re thrilled to start the season in Gqeberha with our defending champions and look forward to an action-packed summer of cricket. As we welcome international talent to the roaring pool of local stars, we aim to deliver an unforgettable experience for both players and fans alike.”

For all the fixtures click here.