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Graeme Smith Eyes Indian players Participation in SA20

image-lezitre7The inaugural edition of SA20 was a grand success (Twitter)

Cricket South Africa (CSA) Director Graeme Smith, has expressed his belief that the SA20 league could be an opportune stage for Indian cricketers, provided the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revises its policy on player participation in foreign T20 leagues.

The former South African skipper, while speaking to AB de Villiers on the latter's YouTube channel, highlighted CSA's amicable relationship with the BCCI and expressed the desire to invite Indian players to participate in SA20 if the Indian board changes its policy.

"I get asked this question a lot, especially from Indian journos. I think the BCCI has got a policy over their players at the moment. I think we are perfectly suited if that policy changes. We have a good relationship with the BCCI and we engage with them a lot,” Smith said.

The southpaw emphasized that SA20 was created with the goal of creating a buzz amongst South African cricket fans and taking the tournament to the pinnacle of the cricketing world. He stated that South African cricket had been subject to several challenges over the years, and that SA20 aims to bring international standards to the country's cricketing landscape.

Smith further expressed his aspiration to make SA20 the largest cricket league in the world after the IPL, with the goal of elevating the standards of South African cricket and its facilities to an international level.

"It's not only about being the best event in South Africa. Globally, we have big ambitions. We want to be the biggest cricket league outside India. We want to bring international standards to South Africa and how we can improve the standards of our stadiums and all that sort of stuff," the South African veteran concluded.

Notably, all six teams that participated in the tournament were owned by Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises. The Sunrisers won the inaugural edition of SA20 after beating the Capitals by four wickets in a high-octane final.