Former Proteas captain Faf du Plessis wants the inaugural SA20 to be a catalyst to restore South Africa’s love for the game of cricket.

The opening match of the SA20 between MI Cape Town and the Paarl Royals gets underway at Newlands at 17:30 on Tuesday.

It is the first of 33 matches in what is being billed as a game-changing tournament for South African cricket.

CSA has done its best to keep ticket prices down to ensure that as many South Africans as possible can afford to go watch.

Du Plessis hopes fans will flock back to local stadiums and that the SA20 can help lighten the mood in SA cricket following the Proteas’ group-stage T20 World Cup exit and Test series defeat in Australia.

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“First and foremost, South Africa is using this competition to grow and there’s no doubt that adding world-class players like Rashid Khan and so many more will benefit from the cricket,” said Du Plessis, who will captain the Joburg Super Kings.

“I talked about management and coaches coming on board. Our whole professional system is going to see and learn a lot from what needs to be done to improve in the standards that we have in our country.

“I think we will only benefit from it. The local players will gain so much from this.

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“From the fan’s perspective, cricket is such a followed game in this country, but now it’s getting people back to watch the game of cricket,” added Du Plessis.

“Yes, people feel like it’s a dark time right now. But we know that the support can change so quickly, so hopefully, this competition will make people very optimistic about the future of South African cricket.”

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Joburg Super Kings: Faf du Plessis (c), Gerald Coetzee, Maheesh Theekshana, Romario Shepherd, Harry Brook, Janneman Malan, Reeza Hendricks, Kyle Verreynne, George Garton, Alzarri Joseph, Leus du Plooy, Lewis Gregory, Lizaad Williams, Donavon Ferreira, Nandre Burger, Malusi Siboto, Caleb Seleka, Aaron Phangiso.