MI Cape Town: Introducing the entertainers

SA20 TEAM GUIDE: MI Cape Town have assembled a formidable first-choice XI, brimming with power and dynamism. They look to be real contenders for the SA20 title, says SAM MORSHEAD

Coach: Simon Katich

The former Australia international recently had a bizarre, two-month stint with Sunrisers Hyderabad, quitting his assistant coach role after a disagreement over auction strategy. He has previously been assistant coach at Kolkata Knight Riders and head coach at Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Heavily linked with the England head coach position following the dismissal of Chris Silverwood, and is the lead coach at Manchester Originals' men's side. 

He is supported by batting coach Hashim Amla, bowling coach Jacob Oram, and fielding coach James Pamment. Robin Peterson is the team manager.

Captain: Rashid Khan

One of the true global superstars of the short format, Rashid Khan is about as experienced as a franchise player comes. He's played all over the world, in all conditions, and generally been an asset to the teams he's represented.

Captaincy is not new ground, either. He is the current skipper of the Afghanistan T20 team.

Overseas stars

Liam Livingstone: The England allrounder can hit the ball as far as anyone on the planet, and appears to fit what looks like a very flexible MI Cape Town middle order perfectly. Well rested, having pulled out of a stint with Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash, he should be ready to fire. Useful with the ball, too. A very modern cricketer.

Sam Curran: Talking of modern cricketers, say hello to the most expensive player in IPL history. Curran was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad for £1.8million in December's mini-auction, and there was a good reason why he was at the centre of a bidding war. The star bowler of the T20 World Cup, with his skiddy and disciplined left-arm seam, he is very capable at both ends of the innings with the ball, and can be devastating with bat in hand. 

Could float anywhere between No.1 and No.7 in this batting lineup (he was previously used as an opener in the IPL by Punjab Kings), and combines coolness under pressure with pure aggression. 

Rashid Khan: Khan has the capacity to strangle an innings through the middle overs. His fast leg-breaks have been perplexing batsmen the world over for years, and a career T20 economy of 6.37 (from nearly 9,000 balls bowled in the format) is testament to his mental toughness and pure ability. Not quite at the level of Livingstone or Curran with the bat, but can helicopter an opposition bowling unit to death on his day. A phenomenal short-format cricketer. 

Odean Smith: Likely to get a decent runout, given Jofra Archer is only just returning to action, Smith is a bowling allrounder who can club quick runs at the end of an innings. His career economy with the ball is nothing special at a shade over 9, but in a world which values seam allrounders above just about all else, he is a prize asset. And he hits a six better than every nine balls at the crease.

Olly Stone: May not get a great deal of gametime, simply because of the wealth of overseas talent in this squad - and given Smith's considerable superiority with the bat - but Stone is a highly skilled white-ball bowler, capable of topping 90mph regularly, and reliable at both ends of the innings. 

Jofra Archer: The wildcard pick by the MI ownership, who have also continued to show faith in him at Mumbai Indians despite recent injury troubles, we all know what he is capable of. Last played a T20 match in July 2021.

^{Rashid Khan captains MI Cape Town [Mark Brake/Getty Images]}

BATTING

Power hitters

Gosh, where do you start? 

Nine per cent of all the deliveries Livingstone has faced in T20 cricket (3,437) have gone for six. He can take an innings away from an opposition in the time it takes to boil a kettle, so don't pop to the kitchen if he's at the crease. 

Dewald Brevis - or Baby AB, as he has become known - is the batting talent South African cricket is most excited about, and he showed why during a ridiculous innings in the SA T20 Challenge. Brevis smacked 162 in 57 balls for Titans against Knights. He struck 24 fours and 24 sixes across nine innings in last year's SA T20 Challenge, has a career strike rate of 150 from 32 innings. And over a third of the deliveries he has faced in the format have gone to the boundary. He is 19.

Smith, Khan and Curran are also potent - primarily against pace - while keep an eye on opener Wes Marshall, who was picked up for a low fee in the auction. Marshall, 29, has a career T20 strike rate of 147 - though his recent showing in the SA T20 Challenge was more modest. Marshall struck at 139 in that competition, for North West, and has been in even more meagre form in the recent List A tournament in South Africa.

Anchor

Rassie van der Dussen needs to be the glue that sticks this collection of entertainers together. An elegant batsman in his own right, and far from being a snail in the format (van der Dussen hits at 130 across his career in T20), he accumulates runs in a different way to the rest of his teammates, and at 33 years old with nearly 100 caps for his country across formats... he knows how to deal with situations. A cool head in an important role.

Finisher

Having Livingstone, Curran, Khan and Smith between No.5 and No.8 (depending on circumstances) means a variety of options to take Cape Town as high as they need to go.

Problem areas

There's an argument to say the opening pair is a little raw. Could Curran or even Livingstone be pushed up to open? And does an injury to Livingstone, Brevis or Curran throw the plans into disarray given the relative lack of bench strength? We're splitting hairs.

^{Liam Livingstone is a formidable force [Getty Images]}

BOWLING

Speed merchants

A fully fit MI Cape Town attack is something to be feared. Kagiso Rabada leads the line. The decorated South Africa international is one of the world's best all-format bowlers, and will be used across the innings. Not always the most effective in the powerplay, he still boasts a career strike rate below 17 (impressive considering he is a regular in the IPL - the best T20 stage in the world), and an economy below 8.

If Archer is available, even for only one or two games, Cape Town will receive a considerable boost. Archer is a terrific death bowler, capable of playing the enforcer role through the middle overs thanks to his express pace, and has the nerve in pressure situations (see World Cup final 2019). 

It doesn't stop there, though. Curran is the left-arm option, and was the standout bowler at the T20 World Cup. He too can be used at both ends of an innings. Smith can hurry up a batsman, capable as he is of hitting 90mph off a short runup. Stone might be used sparingly but is an intelligent white-ball quick, again blessed with good pace, while Beuran Hendricks' career strike rate in T20 is better than Rabada's (albeit from a smaller sample size and in somewhat less prestigious competition).

Duan Jansen, the younger brother of Marco, is another Mumbai/Cape Town dual signing. At 22, he is raw, but tall, left-arm quicks who present an unusual angle of release often trouble batsmen. There's depth.

Ziyaad Abrahams is an inexperienced 25-year-old. The right-arm seamer has played 22 T20s across his career.

Variation

Much will rely on Rashid Khan in the spin department, particularly through the middle of the innings. George Linde, the left-armer, has not had the brightest past year. He claimed five wickets in the CSA T20 Challenge, albeit keeping his economy to little more than 6 in the process, but was underwhelming in his first year at Kent.Ziyaad Abrahams

Given the squad is without a traditional off-spinner, Livingstone might get through a bit of work.

It will be intriguing to see if Cape Town turn to Waqar Salamkheil, the 21-year-old Afghan left-arm wrist-spinner, plucked out of nowhere in the auction for a base-price £8,500.

Problem areas

The first-choice attack is strong. Very strong. Bench strength could again become a concern, but even then there is a lot of talent in reserve.

^{Kagiso Rabada leads the bowling attack [Getty Images]}

Who takes the gloves?

Rickelton. The 26-year-old has 38 career dismissals in T20 cricket.

Squad: Jofra Archer, Dewald Brevis, Sam Curran, Beuran Hendricks, Duan Jansen, Rashid Khan, George Linde, Liam Livingstone, Wesley Marshall, Delano Potgieter, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Grant Roelofsen, Waqar Salamkheil, Odean Smith, Olly Stone, Rassie van der Dussen

Possible starting XI: Wes Marshall, Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, Rassie van der Dussen, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Rashid Khan, Odean Smith/Jofra Archer, George Linde/Beuran Hendricks, Duan Jansen, Kagiso Rabada

Fixtures: January 10 - Paarl Royals (h); January 13 - Durban Super Giants (h); January 14 - Joburg Super Kings (h); January 16 - Sunrisers Eastern Cape (a); January 18 - Sunrisers Eastern Cape (h); January 21 - Paarl Royals (a); January 23 - Pretoria Capitals (h); February 2 - Durban Super Giants (a); February 4 - Pretoria Capitals (a); February 6 - Joburg Super Kings (a)