Image Source- AFP
Prior to the SA20 auction, which took place in
Johannesburg on Wednesday, Durban’s Super Giants announced that they had
selected Nicholas Pooran, a T20 sensation from the West Indies, as their
wildcard pick.
Pooran will compete in the competition for the first
time and will represent the same owners as in the Indian Premier League. The
27-year-old recently served as a reminder of his powers by hitting a 51-ball
century for his side, the Trinbago Knight Riders, in the Caribbean Premier
League final. He led MI New York, the team he was captaining, to victory in the
inaugural Major League Cricket competition in the United States earlier this
year by scoring the most runs. Pooran has 5861 total T20 runs with a strike
rate of 144 across a career that spans 292 matches and 10 years.
Fast-bowling all-rounder Matthew Boast also had a nice
day thanks to Pretoria Capitals, who made him the joint-most expensive signing
of the SA20 auction. The 20-year-old was a member of South Africa’s Under-19
side that competed in the 2022 World Cup and has 53 runs and nine wickets
through six T20 matches.
The other player to pique interest was Dayyaan Galiem,
who joined Joburg Super Kings for R1.6 million. In 34 T20 matches, the
26-year-old has 437 runs and 25 wickets. The Super Kings were on a purchasing
frenzy when they paid R 850,000 each for Derbyshire hitter Wayne Madsen and
West Indies all-rounder Romario Shepherd. Imran Tahir, a former South African
legspinner and CPL 2023 champion, was chosen as JSK’s wildcard.