Sixteen teams gear up for YesPlay Pro20 Cup

The highly anticipated YesPlay Pro20 Cup is finally here, with 16 domestic cricket teams coming together with one goal: to be crowned the new T20 champions for the 2026/27 season.

Last season’s champions, Dafabet Warriors, enjoyed an incredible campaign that culminated in an exciting finale against Dafabet Boland in Paarl.

They will have to do it all over again but this time face a new challenge as Division 1 and Division 2 teams come together for one festival of T20 cricket over eight weeks.

Adding to the excitement, R2-million will be up for grabs across all 71 matches, giving fans the chance to catch their share throughout the competition.

Warriors captain Matthew de Villiers says his side is ready to get their campaign underway this Friday.

“We’ve had a couple of conversations around it. We’ve spoken about different levels of the game, guys getting opportunities and guys also not being complacent in Division 1. We’ve also asked for more cricket as well, so I think the guys are very excited to travel to different parts of the country,” said De Villiers.

“I think it’s good that it sets an attitude in the team and a mindset that we have to rock up and win, no matter where we go. It’s going to be a very good tournament and we’re all looking forward to it for sure.”

Meanwhile, YesPlay Western Province Cobras captain George Linde has also set his sights on the trophy, with the team looking to reclaim the T20 title more than a decade after their last triumph.

Speaking at the captains’ YesPlay Pro20 Hour this week, Linde said: “If I look back, the last three, four years we haven’t done as well as we want in the T20 format. So I think that’s probably a format that we’d love to win. We’ve got a very young squad and it’s actually exciting, so yeah, it’s going to be cool to see the younger kids go out, and talented cricketers as well. So yeah, we’re definitely going to try and win this T20 Cup.”

Mpumalanga Rhinos all-rounder Muhammed Mayet has likened the new competition to football’s FA Cup as his side prepares to open its campaign against Momentum Multiply Titans on Sunday.

“Yeah, I think there are quite a few similarities between the FA Cup and this tournament. It will be nice for the Division 2 teams to get a bit of exposure. T20 is, you know, sort of a game where it’s your day and there’s always room to upset someone or something. Having both divisions mixed will be quite interesting to see what happens,” concluded the 28-year-old.

The competition gets underway on Friday with a clash between defending champions, Warriors and North West Dragons, followed by the Titans and Cobras later in the day, with both matches taking place at SuperSport Park.

Saturday’s only fixture takes place at Kimberley Oval, with an all-Division 2 affair between Northern Cape Heat and Eastern Cape Iinyathi.

Sunday then sees three matches on the menu, with Hollywoodbets Dolphins hosting DP World Lions at the Hollywoodbets Kingsmead, the Cobras taking on Flexbrands Knights at YesPlay Newlands Cape Town and the Titans travelling to White River Country Club to face the Rhinos and conclude the opening weekend’s action.