Paarl Royals Welcomes New Talent for SA20 Season 2
The excitement is building as Paarl Royals, a franchise owned by Royals Sports Group, unveils its formidable squad of 19 players for the highly anticipated Season 2 of South Africa’s T20 league, the SA20. The tournament is scheduled to kick off on January 10, 2024.
One of the first notable signings for Paarl Royals at the Auction was the South African-born English sensation, John Turner. The talented pacer from Hampshire secured his place with a base price of R425,000. At just 22 years old, Turner made his T20 debut earlier this year for Hampshire and even had a stint in The Hundred with the Trent Rockets, impressing everyone with figures of 1/22 and an economy rate of 6.60 during his debut.
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Adding to the squad’s strength is the inclusion of the experienced Ireland international, Lorcan Tucker. The franchise secured Tucker for his base price of R175,000. The 27-year-old Tucker made his T20I debut for Ireland back in 2016 and has since demonstrated his prowess by amassing over a thousand runs in 59 matches, maintaining an impressive strike rate of 123.53. Additionally, he has 55 dismissals to his name behind the stumps.
Completing the trio of exciting signings is the young and promising 17-year-old wicketkeeper-batter, Lhuan-dre Pretorius. He joined the franchise as a Rookie signing in the Draft. Pretorius has been involved with the South African Under-19 team and also contributed to the South African Emerging Team, where he recently made his List A debut, stunning everyone with a quickfire 57 off 45 balls.
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With these three significant signings, Paarl Royals are poised for Season 2 with a well-rounded squad that boasts both proven experience and emerging talent. The team includes renowned players like England’s skipper Jos Buttler, South African stalwarts David Miller, Tabraiz Shamsi, and Lungi Ngidi, as well as the recent acquisitions of Jason Roy, Obed McCoy, and Fabian Allen. This mix of seasoned and fresh talent will commence their SA20 2024 campaign on January 12, 2024, facing the Pretoria Capitals at their home ground of Boland Park.
In addition to their overseas recruits, the franchise maintains a robust core of South African players, featuring the likes of Bjorn Fortuin, Andile Phehlukwayo, Wihan Lubbe, Dane Vilas, Mitchell van Buuren, Ferisco Adams, Codi Yusuf, Evan Jones, and Kwena Maphaka.
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