Women's T20 Super League Explained

Women's T20 Super League should not be confused with Women's Cricket Super League.

Women's T20 Super League
Administrator:Cricket South Africa
Cricket Format:Twenty20
First:2019
Last:2022–23
Tournament Format:Double round-robin
Participants:4
Champions:No champion crowned in 2022–23
Most Successful:Coronations (2 titles)

The Women's T20 Super League is a women's domestic Twenty20 cricket tournament organised by Cricket South Africa. The tournament began in September 2019, with four teams taking part; these teams were renamed for a second competition in December 2019. The third competition took place in December 2020, which was won by Coronations. The competition took place again in December 2022, with no overall winner crowned due to the amount of matches abandoned due to rain.

The tournament aims to give more game time and competition for South Africa's best women players, with players organised into teams and playing matches at the same ground over a weekend.

History

The tournament began in 2019, conceived as a way of giving the best South African women cricketers more game time and more competitive cricket. The first tournament took place over a weekend in September 2019, with four teams playing each other once.[1] The four teams were named after their coaches: Dinesha Devnarain, Martelize van der Merwe, Francois van der Merwe and Claire Terblanche, with the Devnarain XI winning all of their matches to win the title.

The second edition of the tournament took place later that year, in December 2019. The competition retained the same format, but the teams were renamed: Devnarain XI becoming Coronations, Terblanche XI becoming Starlights, F van der Merwe XI becoming Thistles and M van der Merwe XI becoming Duchesses.[2] Starlights, Duchesses and Coronations all won two matches each, with Starlights triumphing on Net Run Rate.

The third edition of the Super League took place in December 2020, with a Virtual Draft taking place before the tournament to allocate players.[3] Coronations won their second title (and first under their new name), winning two matches and edging out runners-up Thistles on Net Run Rate.

The tournament returned in December 2022 for its fourth edition, with a South Africa Under-19 team replacing Duchesses in the four-team competition.[4] With five matches abandoned due to rain, no overall winner was crowned. Starlights finished top of the group standings, winning all of their completed matches.[5]

Teams

TeamPrevious NameFirstLastTitles
CoronationsDevnarain XI20192022–23
DuchessesM van der Merwe XI20192020–21
South Africa Under-19s2022–232022–23
StarlightsTerblanche XI20192022–23
ThistlesF van der Merwe XI20192022–23

Results

Season1st2nd3rd4thRef
2019Devnarain XIM van der Merwe XIF van der Merwe XITerblanche XI[6]
2019–20StarlightsCoronationsDuchessesThistles[7]
2020–21CoronationsThistlesStarlightsDuchesses[8]
2022–23CoronationsThistlesSouth Africa Under-19s

Notes and References

  1. Web site: CSA launches inaugural Women's T20 Super League . Cricket South Africa . 2 June 2021.
  2. Web site: CSA launches Women's Super League . Cricket South Africa . 2 June 2021.
  3. Web site: WSL 3.0: All you need to Know - Women's Super League – Teams, Fixtures and Player Squads . CricketWorld . 2 June 2021.
  4. Web site: WSL 4.0 Squads and Fixtures: Star-Studded Lineups and Triple Headers . Cricket South Africa . 25 November 2022 . 12 December 2022.
  5. Web site: Rain brings a premature end to Women's Super League . Super Sport . 16 December 2022 . 18 December 2022.
  6. Web site: Women's T20 Super League 2019/20 . CricketArchive . 2 June 2021.
  7. Web site: Women's Super League 2019/20 . CricketArchive . 2 June 2021.
  8. Web site: Women's T20 Super League 2020/21 . CricketArchive . 2 June 2021.