SA20 champions Sunrisers EC ready to begin title defence against Kings

The Sunrisers Eastern Cape start the defence of their SA20 title this week, and England international Dawid Malan says their first target is to emerge through the round-robin stages. 

Malan, a left-handed top-order batter, is one of the notable inclusions in the Sunrisers squad for the second edition of South Africa’s premier T20 competition.

Like Malan, who was brought in during the pre-signing window, England all-rounder Liam Dawson was also drafted into the Gqeberha side’s ranks, while their countryman Craig Overton received the nod as the wild-card selection but has been ruled out for the season with injury.

Sisanda Magala is another player they will miss this season due to an injury.

At the season 2 auction, the Orange Army, who retained the core of their championship-winning side, acquired three SA-based youngsters in Beyers Swanepoel and Caleb Seleka while Andile Simelane was drafted as the rookie selection. 

As part of the final phase of their preparations, the Sunrisers faced the Netherlands in two warm-up matches in Gqeberha on Friday and Saturday as they looked to fine-tune their plans and processes before the tournament starts this week.

Speaking to TimesLIVE before a net session at the weekend, Malan was eager to pull on the orange garb when their title defence begins against the Joburg Super Kings in front of what is expected to be a packed St George’s Park on Wednesday. 

“I have heard so much about it and I am really looking forward to playing in front of that band. They were here yesterday [Friday] and it sounded amazing,” Malan said.

“Also, from what I have heard, the fans are quite passionate and they get behind the boys, so hopefully we can put on a few good performances to keep them coming back to support us.”

The former world-leading T20 batsman believes if they can secure a few early wins, it could give them good momentum for when the business end of the group stages rolls around. 

“You always want to win every game you play in. Franchise cricket is slightly different in the sense that you need to play good enough cricket to get to those qualifying stages, and then you just need to win two games from there. It is all about when a team peaks.

“We will always try to win every game. But if you look at any franchise tournaments, you probably need to win four to five games to advance, which means you are probably losing half your games, but that is part and parcel of franchise cricket. 

“It is important to win every game, but it is also important to win when it matters.”

Malan brings with him a wealth of experience, having represented franchises across the globe, and is eager to share his knowledge with his teammates.

He has accumulated a shade under 1,900 runs in 62 T20 Internationals, including a century and 16 half-centuries, while at the domestic and franchise levels he has amassed 8,667 in 316, including five hundreds and 36 half-centuries.

“We have a really good, balanced squad if you look at it on paper.

“We have some experienced South Africa players who have done extremely well [recently], overseas players of different ages and experience levels, and I have watched some of the local boys in the nets and they look like really good players. 

“For me, whether I do well or not, hopefully I can lend my experience and help one or two of the guys over the next five to six weeks. If some of these players can leave having learnt something, then I feel like I have left something here. 

“Tournaments like these are as close as it gets to replicating international cricket in terms of the pressure it brings. Being part of a franchise, players usually only get one- or two-year contracts.

“You are under pressure to perform consistently in front of big crowds, so the more opportunities young players get to play and do well, the more it prepares them for international cricket.”