Key match-ups, analysis, form, team news, weather forecast, tickets, TV and streaming information, odds, predictions and more ahead of the latest encounter in the 2023 SA20
MI Cape Town will host Paarl Royals in match one of the SA20 in 2023.
Start of play is scheduled for 5.30pm local time (3.30pm GMT) on Tuesday, January 10.
The game will be staged in Cape Town at Newlands.
Well, this is the first match of a brand new competition, so there's no current form or historic form to go on for either of these two sides.
MI Cape Town are owned by the same group which owns Mumbai Indians, and have got Simon Katich installed as head coach. Rashid Khan skippers the side, with a series of entertaining overseas stars among the ranks, including Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Odean Smith and Jofra Archer.
Paarl Royals are owned by the Rajasthan Royals ownership group. Jos Buttler captains the team, and Jason Roy and Eoin Morgan join from the England World Cup-winning side of 2019.
Rashid Khan leads MI Cape Town [Getty Images]
It will be fascinating to see how MI Cape Town's openers go in the early rounds of the tournament. While the rest of the XI is stacked with experience, the top order is comparably raw. That said, with Brevis-Livingstone-Curran-van der Dussen to come, mistakes should be rectified.
In this encounter, they meet an opposition which has a very different opening partnership. Jos Buttler and Jason Roy is a pairing most teams in world cricket would love to have at the top of their lineup. Roy has been going through a difficult time with the bat over the past six months, and needs to hit the ground running.
Paarl Royals' death bowling needs to be on point to prevent Liam Livingstone, Rashid Khan, Sam Curran and Odean Smith going ballistic. The absence of Obed McCoy leaves them a little light on enforcement.
There is the option of MI Cape Town elevating Curran to open the batting, too, which would be an interesting development.
A dry day is expected in Cape Town, where temperatures could touch 22 degrees Celsius at the start of play.
Obed McCoy was forced out of the tournament in the days before the first game, and Paarl Royals will be scrambling to fill that void.
It is still unclear how fit Jofra Archer is. Archer is in England's squad for the ODIs in South Africa at the end of the month, but has been out for a considerable period of time and may not be risked regularly by MI Cape Town.
MI Cape Town: Ziyaad Abrahams, 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
Paarl Royals: Ferisco Adams, Corbin Bosch, Jos Buttler, Bjorn Fortuin, Evan Jones, Wihan Lubbe, Imraan Manack, David Miller, Eoin Morgan, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Jason Roy, Tabraiz Shamsi, Ramon Simmonds, Mitchell van Buuren, Dane Vilas, Codi Yusuf
*Squads are for the whole SA20 and not specific to this match
Jos Buttler is the Paarl Royals captain [Getty Images]
MI Cape Town: Wes Marshall, Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, Rassie van der Dussen, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Rashid Khan, Odean Smith, George Linde, Duan Jansen, Kagiso Rabada
Paarl Royals: Jos Buttler, Jason Roy, Wihan Lubbe, David Miller, Dane Vilas, Corbin Bosch, Andile Phehlukwayo, Ferisco Adams, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Ramon Simmonds
Betway have MI Cape Town the marginal favourites at 4/5 for the win. Paarl Royals are an unattractive 19/20.
MI Cape Town look a force in this competition.
Advance tickets have sold out online for this game.
Sky Sports has the UK rights to SA20 matches for five years, and the games will be spread across Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Mix.
In India, Sports18 and Jio Cinema will broadcast and stream all the matches.
The Cricketer will carry match reports from every game.
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