T20 World Cup-winning England captain Jos Buttler is pleased to have joined up with David Miller and JP Duminy at the Paarl Royals.
The franchise will start their SA20 campaign with a match against MI Cape Town at Newlands on Tuesday (17:30).
Buttler believes the Royals have assembled a squad capable of winning the inaugural tournament.
“If you look through the team, there are some fantastic players in there, but then it’s very much down to how we play and get the best out of ourselves and click as a unit,” he said.
“I’m really excited to play under David Miller’s leadership and I’ve played with him a fair bit – the [Rajasthan] Royals also know him well and we’re looking forward to him leading us.
“”I think we have some great experience and some fantastic young players as well, so it’s a nice blend.
“There’s JP Duminy as head coach, he’s someone who I’ve played against a few times and I’m really looking forward to working alongside him,” added Buttler who has played at Boland Park twice before with his national team.
Buttler says South African cricket will benefit from having a top-level T20 franchise tournament.
“Leagues like the SA20 are very much at the forefront of cricket and are also paving way for the future of cricket.
“In my opinion, the IPL is the biggest and the best cricket tournament in the world, because of the kind of eyeballs it brings to the game. And similarly, it’s really important for South African cricket to have so many IPL teams being associated with the SA20.
“Franchise cricket brings the best players from the international teams and the best local talent together, and gives the domestic players an environment to thrive and flourish in.
“With the youngsters getting that opportunity to rub shoulders with the best in the world, it’ll leave a really positive impact on the development of South African cricket and help pave a stronger environment where there is accelerated learning. So, I see the SA20 as a really important moment in South African cricket’s history.”
In terms of the conditions, Buttler expects “fast and bouncy wickets in most places, but Boland Park could be on the slower side and the bigger boundaries along with the winds can play a part.”
Paarl Royals: David Miller (c), Corbin Bosch, Jos Buttler, Obed McCoy, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Jason Roy, Dane Vilas, Bjorn Fortuin, Wihan Lubbe, Ferisco Adams, Imraan Manack, Evan Jones, Ramon Simmonds, Mitchell van Buuren, Eoin Morgan, Codi Yusuf, Andile Phehlukwayo.
