Inaugural tournament match schedule announced by T20 Global League

CAPE TOWN - The T20 Global League unveiled a whirlwind start to its inaugural season with the release of the final match schedule in Cape Town on Monday.

The league starts with a typical north-south derby between the Cape Town Knight Riders and Pretoria Mavericks at Newlands on Friday, November 3. 

This will be followed by two doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. In all, five different venues will host the opening weekend of matches which will see all eight franchises in action.

There will be a doubleheader every weekend, as well as several during the week as the league will hold 57 matches in the space of 44 action-packed days. 

There are three rest/travel days, similar to the famous Tour de France cycle race schedule, to give squads some respite in a tournament that is going to test the endurance of all teams.

To add to the excitement, there is a one-off final between the top two finishers on the log and there will be no opportunity for the teams to get in through the back door of an eliminator or qualifier.

“There is quite literally going to be non-stop action of the highest international quality from the league opener on November 3 right through to the final on December 16,” commented T20 Global League Tournament Director, Russell Adams. 

“South African sport has never experienced anything quite like this before and I am absolutely confident that the T20 Global League will take the sport entertainment industry in this country to a new level."

“Can you imagine the excitement on our opening night at the iconic Newlands when two of the greatest players in the history of the T20 format, AB de Villiers of the Pretoria Mavericks, and Chris Gayle of the Cape Town Knight Riders, go head to head?"

“There will be similar excitement as the league moves around the country to our other host venues with a myriad of international and South African stars in action. And watch out for the emergence of exciting young South African talent as our rookies are inspired by some of the big names in their squads. This has been a feature of the franchise T20 tournaments around the world,” concluded Adams.