SA20 Auction: Which teams are best placed after the first player auction?

It was an auction that had a distinctly IPL-like feel to it. Not only are all six teams in the league owned by companies that also own IPL teams, but even the auctioneer was also one familiar to Indian fans in Richard Madley. 

Other familiar faces were around; Stephen Fleming sat at the Joburg Super Kings table, whereas Sunrisers owner Kaviya Maran was present for the Sunrisers Eastern Cape. 

MI Cape Town saw Mahela Jayawardene, a former coach of Mumbai Indians and currently in a different role with the franchise, present at the table along with head coach Simon Katich. 

But the big attractions were, naturally, the players themselves. And by the end of the one-day mega auction, specific teams looked more robust than the others. 

For one, it is impossible to look past MI Cape Town as favourites. Before the auction, they had signed Kagiso Rabada, Liam Livingstone and Rashid Khan. 

During the auction, they brought in Dewald Brevis – who is currently signed to Mumbai Indians. They also bid big for Rassie van der Dussen. 

Their South African core looks strong, with Beuran Hendricks – a former MI player – and Duan Jansen and George Linde in the ranks. 

Their other foreign recruits include Olly Stone and Odean Smith, the latter picked up in the accelerated auction, having found no takers the first time around. 

Paarl Royals – owned by the Rajasthan Royals group – also boast a strong line-up. They brought in David Miller, who's previously played for RR and has been in the form of his life lately. 

But they also snapped up Jos Buttler and Obed McCoy, who had excellent seasons with RR in the IPL 2022 and were vital parts of their run to the final. 

They also have Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi and Jason Roy in the side and pick up former England skipper Eoin Morgan in the accelerated auction. 

Yet perhaps their most underrated buy was Bjorn Fortuin – he and Shamsi had combined well for Paarl Rocks when they won the Mzansi Super League in 2019.

Another side that looks rock solid is Durban Super Giants. Quinton de Kock and Jason Holder – both of whom played for Lucknow Super Giants in 2022 – are part of the side. 

They also boast Kyle Mayers, Reece Topley, Dwaine Pretorious, Heinrich Klaasen, Keemo Paul, Keshav Maharaj and Kyle Abbot. Junior Dala and Dilshan Madhushanka are also good options. 

Sunrisers Eastern Cape also boasts a decent squad that will centre around three key players – Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen and Tristan Stubbs. 

There will be exceptionally high expectations from Stubbs, the auction's most expensive buy, having gone for a whopping Rand 9.2 million. 

Nevertheless, it is fair to say that with the kind of talent other teams have, the inaugural edition of the SA20 will be fun to watch.