The inaugural edition of the SA20 league began on January 10 and number of big names from all over the world are taking part in the tournament. Cricket South Africa has tried to shift its focus onto franchise cricket as it aims to find emerging talent.
Sunrise Cape Town won the inaugural edition of the SA20 league beating Pretoria Capitals in the finals by 4 wickets.There were some players who attracted cricket fans with their exceptional performances across matches. Franchises from all around the world will have a keen look at these players and scout them accordingly.
In this article, we’ll look at top 5 performers in the SA20 league 2023.
1) Anrich Nortje
South African pacer, Anrich Nortje has been in form for a couple of years now. His express pace with the right line and length can trouble the best batters on any day. He has been leading the South African pace attack alongside Kagiso Rabada in all formats . His numbers in the IPL and other franchise cricket have been impressive as well.
Nortje is at the heart of the Pretoria Capitals’ pace attack and is one of the main reasons why the team reached the finals of the SA20 league. Nortje is the second-most leading wicket-taker in the tournament and his figures have also been amazing. He has taken 20 wickets at an average of 13.20 at a great economy of 6.16
Jos Buttler
T20 cricket and Jos Buttler is a love story that never seems to end. Be it international cricket or franchise cricket, Buttler just never stops scoring runsand makes sure he makes a big score once he gets set. He has a habit of scoring hundreds in T20 cricket and always makes the bowlers pay if they bowl in his area.
Buttler once again is having a great T20 tournament as he has scored 391 runs in 11 innings at an impressive average of 39.10 . He scored the highest run in the SA20 league. The England white-ball captain has taken his time in this tournament and made sure that he capitalises on his starts .
Heinrich Klaasen
Heinrich Klaasen is one of the highest-scoring wicket-keeper batters and has become one of the key players for Durban’s Super Giants. Klaasen has made sure that he gives his side enough runs to fight for. Klaasen has been one of the very few players in the Durban’s Super Giants team to have performed consistently across matches.
Super Giants have had a terrible season . The first two matches that the team won were courtesy of Heinrich Klaasen and his solid contribution. He has scored 363 runs in 10 innings at an average of over 60.50 and a strike rate of 164. He scores his runs after coming to bat in the middle order and plays quick-fire cameos to take his team to a good total or while chasing a target down.
Roelof van der Merwe
Everyone was very well aware enough of the skills van der Merwe possessed after his amazing exploits in the recently concluded T20 World Cup. The veteran repaid the faith shown by Sunrisers Eastern Cape on him by taking regular wickets for his side and being a key bowler for the franchise in the SA20 league.
The left-arm spinner has taken 20 wickets in 10 matches and has one of the most economical figures in the tournament. He also has the best bowling figures in a match in the inaugural edition after he took six wickets while conceding 20 runs in his four overs. The spell ensured a big win for his side and helped the team with a big NRR boost as well. He was the main reason why Sunrisers Cape Town clinched the inaugural SA20 title.
Will Jacks
Will Jacks has been the find of the tournament and has been scoring runs for fun. Whenever he comes out to bat he looks to time the ball well and in the gaps for runs. He is in glorious form and is one of the main reasons why Pretoria Capitals played the finals of the SA20 league.
Jacks is the sixth-most leading run-getter in the tournament with 270 runs in seven innings at an average of 38.57. The strike rate of just over 200 at which he scores runs is also expectional. Being one of the top run-getters at such an impressive strike rate is a great challenge but the English batter.