The UAE-based International League T20, which will take place at the same time as South Africa’s new T20 league, will offer top players $450,000 (R7.5-million) per season.

ESPNcricinfo reports that the league, run by the Emirates Cricket Board, will potentially have an overall salary cap of $2.5m (R42m) per team.

This would make it the second-richest T20 tournament in the world, behind the IPL.

The ILT20 will involve six franchises with 18-man squads. Each team will play each other twice during the league stage followed by four playoff matches.

The tournament is set to start on 6 January with the final scheduled for 12 February, which means it will clash with SA’s new T20 league.