SA20 2026: Teams Allowed Six Retentions, 72 Players To Go Under The Hammer

The SA20 is set to make some massive changes ahead of its new season in 2026. The MI Cape Town are the defending champions of the tournament having won the title earlier this yearbeating the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the final.

The mega auction will be held on September 9 later this year with as many 72 players up for the auction. Teams will be allowed to have six retentions and the franchises will see an increase in their purse as well.

The salary purse will be increased to USD 2.3 million each. This lift will also mean that the SA20 will now become the league with the second-most salary cap for players after the IPL. All six franchises are owned by IPL owners.

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RTM's Available From Next SA20 Season

Teams will now be allowed to use the Right To Match Card to match the winning bid for a player who represented them in season 3. The number of RTMS will depend on the number of South African players retained by the franchises. Teams will also need to sign two U-23 players in their teams. Teams will need to have at least 19 players in their overall squad.

"The SA20 Season 4 Player Auction is setting up to be the most exciting yet, with about 60% of player slots available for the franchises to fill. Mechanisms such as RTM cards, Wildcard players and an increased salary cap are sure to create interesting situations for teams and will allow them to strategically select their squads. We have seen some life-changing transactions already in the past few years and the upcoming auction should see plenty more" said Stephen Cook, Head of Cricket Operations at SA20.

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SA20 2026 To Start From Boxing Day

Talking about the schedule of the upcoming edition of SA20, it has been rescheduled and will not happen in its original January-February window. With South Africa playing no Test matches at home due to the renovation of stadiums for the ODI World Cup next year, the window has been moved forward and the season will start from December 26 and the final will be played on January 26. The league will return back to its original schedule from the 2027 season.

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