Kevin Pietersen and Darren Gough among TV commentators for SA20
Former England cricketers Kevin Pietersen and Darren Gough have been named among the television commentary team for the SA20 – Cricket South Africa’s new domestic T20 tournament.
Pietersen and Gough will be accompanied by fellow former international cricketers AB de Villiers, Herschelle Gibbs, Shaun Pollock, Mark Boucher, Daren Sammy and others on the commentary panel.
The inaugural edition of the SA20 will feature six teams and start on 10 January, when MI Cape Town host the Paarl Royals at Newlands.
MI Cape Town have recruited fast bowler Jofra Archer, all-rounder Sam Curran and other England stars, while Paarl have batsmen Jos Buttler and Jason Roy.
The four other teams are the Pretoria Capitals, Sunrisers Eastern Cape, Joburg Super Kings and Durban’s Super Giants.
Each SA20 team is owned by a company that also owns a franchise in the Indian Premier League.
England all-rounder Moeen Ali initially joined the Joburg Super Kings, but later withdrew to join the Sharjah Warriors in the International League T20 in the United Arab Emirates. The 2023 editions of the SA20 and ILT20 will largely coincide.
The Joburg Super Kings also lost England batsman Harry Brook. The England and Wales Cricket Board withdrew Brook’s participation in the SA20.
“Since he plays all three formats, the ECB thinks it is too risky to permit Brook to play the SA20,” said Chennai Super Kings chief executive officer Kasi Viswanathan late last year.
“We have received the communication from the ECB. We will have to look for a replacement.”