How SA20 retention rules differ from IPL and offer financial security

The SA20 retention rules differ significantly from those of the IPL and are highly protective of the players' interests, particularly the South African players' interests. If a player is released by the franchise and fails to find a buyer at the auction for at least one more year, he will still receive their full fee.

According to the rules shared with the teams, a South African player who participated in Season One and was released but subsequently not bought in the Season Two auction will be guaranteed his initial auction fee. Furthermore, if a player is bought for less than their first-year fee, the team that owned him will be required to compensate for the difference.

Graeme Smith explained this point. "For Season 2 of Betway SA20, South African players on multi-year contracts may be bought out of the second year by their franchise. The player will then return to the auction pool, but they are guaranteed their fee from the original contract, which will be offset against their new league fee if taken up at the auction," the SA20 commissioner told Cricbuzz on Friday (June 30) through a statement.

For example, Tristan Stubbs, who was bought by Sunrisers Eastern Cape for R9.2m in the first auction, will be guaranteed that amount for the second year if his franchise releases him or if he is bought for a lesser amount in the second-season auction. If he attracts a higher value, Sunrisers Eastern Cape will have no liability.

This rule significantly differs from those in the IPL, where players, particularly Indian players, do not enjoy such protections. However, this shield only applies to this year, as the players were signed for three years on a 2+1 clause, which mandates the teams to protect the players' interests. If a player is released after Season Two, the franchise will have no such liability.

"It is not in the supreme interest of a franchise, but it is a rule of the league that we have to follow," said an owner of a team who requested anonymity due to confidentiality clauses. The owner further confirmed that the liable amount would not be part of the auction purse, which now stands at R 39.1 million, an uplift of R 5.1 million from Season One when it was R 34 million.

On June 1, SA20 opened the trading window for South African players, allowing teams to pre-sign, trade, buy out, or retain players ahead of the auction, expected to take place in September.

Each team is permitted to pre-sign four players, with one of them being a mandatory rookie South African, aged 22 or younger, who did not feature in Season One. Additionally, the regulators have increased the squad size from 18 to 19, including the rookie and Wild Card players, who must be signed before December. The value of the Wild Card player, as in the previous year, will not be part of the player purse. The value also need not be discussed.

As before, teams are required to have a minimum of 11 South African players in their squads. For the match day playing XI, teams can field a maximum of four overseas players and a minimum of seven South Africans.