The SA20 2025-26 auction will be held on September 9 in Johannesburg, and 541 players have been finalized for the bidding. To everyone's surprise, no Indian cricketer has been included in the list even though reports of several veterans turning up for the event had surfaced earlier. The much-awaited T20 tournament gets underway on December 26, 2025, and will see six weeks of action.
Nearly 800 players initially expressed themselves willing to participate in the auction, the highest number in the history of the competition. Some of those who registered included Indian stars such as Piyush Chawla and Siddharth Kaul, along with Ravichandran Ashwin, who has just retired from the Indian Premier League (IPL) and indicated that he might explore international chances. However, none of them feature on the final list.
Overseas Stars Headline Auction Pool
Out of the 541 shortlisted players, 300 are South African, and 241 are foreign cricketers. Bangladesh great Shakib Al Hasan is the star of the international list and can potentially become the first Bangladeshi player to play in SA20. England pace bowlers James Anderson, Alex Hales, Moeen Ali, Jordan Cox, Daniel Worrall, and Adam Rossington further boost the auction.
South Africa's largest players, such as Aiden Markram, Quinton de Kock, Anrich Nortje, Reeza Hendricks, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi, Gerald Coetzee, and Ottneil Baartman, are on the final list as well. World Test Championship champions Kyle Verreynne, David Bedingham, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Tony de Zorzi, and Dane Paterson will be available as well.
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Auction Rules and Tournament Details
The six SA20 franchises have a purse of R131 million (approximately US$7.37 million) to offer 84 available positions, 25 for foreign players. Every squad should have 19 players, a minimum of nine South Africans, a maximum of seven internationals, two South African players younger than 23, and a Wildcard pick.
The auction will decide the tone of what promises to be the most competitive SA20 season so far. With world-class players from all over the world, fans can look forward to an entertaining beginning to the tournament when it begins on December 26, 2025.
