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SA20: Cricket South Africa announce start dates for next three seasons, 2026 season set to clash with BBL 2025

Cricket South Africa has announced the start dates for the next seasons of the SA20 tournaments with the 2026 season set to start on 26 December 2025

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Start dates for next three seasons of SA20 announced

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South African cricket fans are set to witness the SA20 season for a second time before 2025 ends. For the first time in franchise cricket history, a tournament will be played twice in the same year. Cricket South Africa (CSA) has announced the start dates for SA20’s 2026 season, which is set to kick off on Boxing Day 2025. The move has been adopted looking at the next T20 World Cup, which begins in 2026 February.

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CSA has announced the start dates for the next three seasons of the SA20 tournament. The fourth season is set to kick off on 26th December and finish on 26th January 2026. Seasons five and six are slated to begin on 9th January (2027 and 2028), with the finals to be played on 14th and 13th February, respectively. 

The Big Bash League, which is played from and starts in December, could see tough competition from SA20 as far as overseas players are concerned. Some of the big names who take part in the tournament could miss a few games in order to play international cricket. 

SA20 Season Four: 26 December 2025 to 26 January 2026 
SA20 Season Five: 9 January 2027 to 14 February 2027
SA20 Season six: 9 January 2028 to 13 February 2028

Reason behind the move revealed 

Former skipper Graeme Smith, who happens to be the commissioner of the league, said, “Confirming the SA20 window for a three-year period allows the league to bring certainty to all stakeholders and assists in securing our place when planning the global calendar. 

The 43-year-old also went on to add, “We know fans respond particularly well to weekend and holiday fixtures and with the ICC T20 World Cup in early February next year, our Season 4 dates provide the unique opportunity to capitalise on South Africa’s peak cricket season and key public holidays. Early planning has also meant that we are able to look at an extended window from 2026/27 and this will optimise scheduling, logistics and the fan experience.

Speaking about the 2025 season, MI Cape Town are set to take on tabletoppers Paarl Royals in the first qualifier on Monday. The winners of the game will qualify for the finals to be played on Sunday. The loser of the game will await the winners of the eliminator match between Sunrisers Eastern Cape and Joburg Super Kings in the second qualifier. 

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