SA20 Commissioner Graeme Smith has expressed his desire to see more Indian cricketers in South Africa’s booming T20 league. Recently, Smith expressed optimism about strengthening ties with the BCCI and highlighted SA20’s desire to attract Indian players. It is worth noting that all six SA20 franchises are owned by IPL team owners, giving the league a strong Indian connection.

BCCI’s longstanding policy prohibits active Indian cricketers from taking part in foreign leagues. As per BCCI policy, active Indian players, whether they’re playing internationally, domestically, or in the IPL, cannot participate in overseas T20 leagues. Dinesh Karthik, a veteran Indian batter, became the league’s first Indian to play the tournament. He was able to participate after retiring from all forms of cricket.

"Firstly, we would love to have more Indian players [in SA20]. I think whenever India play in South Africa, you can see the love for the Indian team. The talent is incredible. I think we will continue to work with the BCCI on these things. And I think if that ever changes with the six IPL franchises, I think we're perfectly suited to be able to attract Indian players. Those type of contracts with Dinesh signing with Paarl Royals is always a direct deal between the franchise [and the player],” Smith said in Mumbai on Wednesday.

“And I think, obviously, with retired players and more retired players coming, it's a balance between attracting that retired Indian player but still keeping your league competitive. And our franchises really want to win, as you've experienced in IPL and in SA20. So they're always looking for the best players who can perform consistently,” he added.

Currently, South Africa team is in India for a multi-format tour which will end on December 19, leaving only one week of gap before the SA20 begins.

"Yeah, it's actually always been the case, though, in this cycle, that Cricket South Africa never had international cricket in this window. The South African team is here [in India] until 20 December. And then SA20 is now taking place there. And then there's the T20 World Cup here in India in February. So it was a very small window. And I don't think South African cricket ever had a tour lined up, never mind being WTC champions. I think this goes back years in terms of the FTP cycle,” Smith said.