New Delhi: Royals Sports Group-owned franchise Paarl Royals on Thursday revealed a squad of 15 retained players for the 2024 edition of South Africa's explosive T20 league - SA20. The Boland Park-based team has retained the majority of their core with as many as 12 South African players set to feature in the second edition of the league, along with three overseas retained players.
South African batters David Miller, spinners Tabraiz Shamsi and Bjorn Fortuin, pacer Lungi Ngidi, all-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo, top-order batter Wihan Lubbe, and wicket-keeper batter Dane Vilas have all been retained by the Royals, along with domestic talent which includes batter Mitchell van Buuren, all-rounder Ferisco Adams, and pacers Codi Yusuf and Evan Jones. The franchise has also stuck with an experienced trio of overseas players with T20 World Cup-winning captain and highest scorer in SA20 2023 Jos Buttler, English opener Jason Roy and West Indies' seamer Obed McCoy, all set to continue with the franchise. In addition to the retentions, the Royals have also signed highly-rated 17-year-old pacer, Kwena Maphaka, as an uncapped player, who becomes the youngest-ever player to be signed at SA20.
The Royals, who reached the semifinals in the inaugural edition of the tournament, will be without English veteran Eoin Morgan, who had decided to retire from all forms of cricket earlier this year. The team has traded all-rounder Corbin Bosch to Pretoria, and has decided to release spinner Imraan Manack and Windies' seamer Ramon Simmonds.
Commenting on the retentions, Royals' Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara said, "It was a good first-time experience for everyone associated with SA20 last season, and there were plenty of learnings for us as a team. As we venture into a new season, we have decided to stick with a core of players which consists of a majority of top-quality South African talent, along with some experienced international players."
The 15-member Paarl Royals squad which has been retained by the franchise:
South African Players:
David Miller
Lungi Ngidi
Tabraiz Shamsi
Bjorn Fortuin
Andile Phehlukwayo
Dane Vilas
Wihan Lubbe
Mitchell van Buuren
Ferisco Adams
Codi Yusuf
Evan Jones
Kwena Maphaka
Overseas:
Jos Buttler
Jason Roy
Obed McCoy
