The Mzansi Super League (MSL) was a Twenty20 cricket (T20) franchise league held in South Africa. The competition was established in 2018 by Cricket South Africa (CSA) as a replacement for the failed T20 Global League, but only two editions were played before the competition was itself canceled. The SA20 competition, first held in 2023, could be seen as a successor to the MSL.
 | |
| Countries | South Africa |
|---|---|
| Administrator | Cricket South Africa |
| Format | Twenty20 |
| First edition | 2018 |
| Latest edition | 2019 |
| Number of teams | 6 |
| Most successful | Jozi Stars Paarl Rocks (1 title each) |
| Website | MSLT20 |
The first edition of the tournament took place in November and December 2018.[1] The South African Broadcasting Corporation broadcast all matches domestically on free-to-air channels.[2]
The league consisted of six franchise teams representing different South African cities.[3] Two editions were played under this format before changes were proposed to reflect the wide structural changes that were announced for South African domestic cricket in 2021, but the competition did not run in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was then cancelled.[4][5]
Format
editLeague structure
editEach team played each other twice in a home-and-away round-robin format in the league phase. At the conclusion of the league stage, the top three teams qualified for the playoffs, with the team that topped the table after the league phase progressing to the final as the home side and the second and third placed teams played against each other in a play-off match, with the winner advancing to the final.
Player draft
editFranchises acquired players by means of a player draft. A series of marquee players from the South African national team were drafted first, and teams could also select one international marquee player. After these picks, teams were allocated fourteen picks each with player salaries determined by the round in which they were selected.[6]
Teams
editSix franchise teams representing different South African cities competed in the competition.[3] These sides were loosely affiliated with the six franchise teams that played First Class and List-A cricket in the domestic circuit. The sides were:
League season and results
edit| Edition | Season | Champions | Result of Final | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2018 | Jozi Stars 115/2 (17.3 ovs) | Jozi Stars won by 8 wickets Scorecard | Cape Town Blitz 113/7 (20 ovs) |
| 2 | 2019 | Paarl Rocks 148/2 (14.2 ovs) | Paarl Rocks won by 8 wickets Scorecard | Tshwane Spartans 147/6 (20 ovs) |
References
edit- ^ Brickhill, Liam (12 October 2018). "South Africa's T20 tournament to be called Mzansi Super League". ESPN. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
- ^ Burnard, Lloyd (18 October 2018). "Prince: Mzansi Super League on SABC 'groundbreaking'". Sport24. news24.com. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
- ^ a b "6 Mzansi Super League team names revealed". Sport24. 15 October 2018. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
- ^ "Mzansi Super League: Cricket South Africa postpone the third edition until 2021 | The Cricketer". www.thecricketer.com. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
- ^ "Mzansi Super League 2021 cancelled amid Covid-19 concerns". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
- ^ Wilson, Jonhenry (3 September 2019). "Who was bought for how much at 2019 Mzansi Super League player draft". Club Cricket SA. Retrieved 12 December 2021.