For the 2018 season, England batsman Zak Crawley, Netherlands all-rounder Roelof van der Merwe, and fast bowler Craig Overton have all joined Sunrisers Eastern Cape, the reigning SA20 winners.
Although Crawley has played in T20 competitions before, having represented the Hobart Hurricanes and Perth Scorchers in the BBL, Kent in the T20 Blast, and London Spirit in the Hundred, this will be his debut season in the SA20. Although he has only played in eight One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and has not yet made his debut for England in the shorter format, he is a key member of their Test side, opening the batting and being renowned for his expansive strokeplay and high strike rate. Crawley has a strike percentage of 134.77 with 1771 runs scored across 76 T20s.
“I’ve always wanted to be a good white-ball player,” Crawley said. “I’m trying to add a few other shots to my game, but I feel like it’s quite suited [to me] and I’ve gone well in T20 cricket in the past when I’ve had a run at it. I’m trying to add a bit more power to my game, I’m working hard in the nets trying a few different things to hopefully hit more and bigger sixes.”
The men’s squad of Crawley and England has a busy schedule ahead of them, with 16 series, including the 2025 Champions Trophy, slated for play over the next two years, as ESPNcricinfo revealed last week. The bulk of franchise T20 leagues take place during the off-season, giving players the chance to grow and earn without limitations, giving England a competitive advantage over most of their opponents.
Van der Merwe, who was a member of the Sunrisers during the inaugural SA20 season in 2022–2023—has also returned. With 20 wickets that year, the left-arm spinning all-rounder shared first place in the wicket-taking charts despite having a 5.62 economy rate. In the Wanderers final, he made a significant impact by going 4 for 31 against the Pretoria Capitals to win Player of the Match. In addition, he has the best stats in SA20 history, going 6 for 20 against the Super Giants of Durban in Gqeberha.
This will be Overton’s first venture into an international T20 league with the SA20. With 102 matches under his belt, the 30-year-old fast-bowling all-rounder has played exclusively at home in England. In Twenty20 cricket, Overton has claimed 106 wickets at an average of 26.21 and an economy rate of 8.56.
Jonathan Trott, a former England batter, was named the Pretoria Capitals’ new head coach on Monday. Ollie Pope, an English hitter, is reportedly expected to sign with the Capitals soon as well for the 2018 campaign.