The second edition of SA20 has already exceeded the expectations of many with just 11 games into it and the league is flourishing on the promise of the inaugural edition with crowds thronging into the stadiums in numbers, the viewership all over the world going up and cricket on show has been excellent. However, despite the positives, there is also another side in which Cricket South Africa has found itself, not for the first time.
In 2023, CSA had to forfeit the ODI series against Australia, risking their direct World Cup qualification since it was a part of the ODI Super League. Now, this year since the Test series make up the World Test Championship cycle, they can't be forfeited and CSA had the difficult task of choosing a depleted squad for two Tests against New Zealand. With all the contracted players set to play in the SA20, there are several uncapped players in the squad and South African legend Allan Donald called it a first warning shot for CSA.
Responding to an indiatvnews.com query during a media interaction, Donald said that he felt for the players going for the New Zealand tour as they didn't pick themselves and now find themselves in a tricky situation of facing New Zealand in their own conditions, without any prior experience for most of them.
"I feel for those guys going to you know, they didn't pick themselves. People say it's a 'B' team. It's a 'C' team, it doesn't matter. They have to go to New Zealand and represent South Africa and I know that coach Shukri Conrad will do his utmost best to get them to get them rallied around playing good cricket.
"It's got to be a clearer calendar where there's nothing in the way that there's no major Test series or other stuff that gets in the way. So I think we've had our first warning shot of what potentially could happen and it has happened that, that we are sending a team over there that is not our best Test team. But that's for another day. And this is what we've got now and we've got the best some of the best players in the world competing here in SA20. So yeah, look, it's I'm sure that the powers that be will sit down after this and make sure that planning for next year must be absolutely accurate," Donald further said when asked if CSA could go the IPL way of having no international cricket at the time of the tournament.
Donald in conclusion picked Paarl Royals as their favourites for the tournament given they have come out swinging this tournament and despite their first loss on Friday against MI Cape Town, they are still at the top of the table with 13 points in the kitty.
South Africa Test squad for New Zealand series: Neil Brand (capt), David Bedingham, Ruan de Swardt, Clyde Fortuin (wk), Zubayr Hamza, Tshepo Moreki, Mihlali Mpongwana, Duanne Olivier, Edward Moore, Dane Paterson, Keegan Petersen, Dane Piedt, Raynard van Tonder, Shaun von Berg, Khaya Zondo
