Faf du Plessis IPL

Chennai Super Kings beat Royal Challengers Bangalore in a high-scoring IPL match despite a half-century from Faf du Plessis. Photo: Twitter @imVkohli

India may hold the key to the success of CSA’s new T20 competition

CSA are intent on having a third crack at launching a T20 competition to attract global interest but India may hold the secret to success.

Faf du Plessis IPL

Chennai Super Kings beat Royal Challengers Bangalore in a high-scoring IPL match despite a half-century from Faf du Plessis. Photo: Twitter @imVkohli

Cricket South Africa are intent on having a third crack at launching a franchise T20 competition to attract global interest and TV money but India may hold the secret to success.

CSA’s speculation is set to come with a hefty price tag and success is by no means guaranteed, even if there are now a number of successful T20 leagues set up around the world.

India may hold the key

The key to really unlocking the earning potential of a T20 league comes in attracting interest from the lucrative Indian TV market.

India has competing media titans, hungry for more T20 cricket to thrust upon 2 billion eyeballs, but they won’t act if interest is low.

Generating interest from India is so vital that Cricket South Africa would do well to negotiate an arrangement with the BCCI that would see prominent India players be available to play in this tournament.

While such a move might not be essential to success, it would certainly provide any such tournament with a massive boost.

The BCCI rarely grants NOCs for players to compete overseas, usually limiting them to stints in County Cricket.

India’s top players are hot media properties and there is also a large group of players in the country looking to make a case to step up into the international arena, another group who could attract significant interest in a T20 tournament.

There are a lot of things CSA still need to square away just to get this tournament off the ground, and each step is fraught with potential disaster if they get the slightest thing wrong.

David Miller has enjoyed a standout IPL season. Photo=: Twitter India
David Miller enjoyed a standout IPL season. Photo: BCCI

A spanner in the works

CSA are yet to confirm a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the player’s union SACA. And the details of that arrangement might affect overseas participation.

Teams will be able to sign up to three overseas players before the player auction itself but the preliminary list of foreign talents does not include players from India.

This is despite the franchise owners having strong links with the IPL.

This tournament will live and die by the interest it generates and CSA must do all they can to maximise the buzz, getting India players wouldn’t be easy but it would be a huge boost.