Keshav Maharaj excited to work with Sourav Ganguly and Shaun Pollock at Pretoria Capitals
Pretoria Capitals captain Keshav Maharaj is relishing the prospect of working with cricketing legends Sourav Ganguly and Shaun Pollock as the SA20 Season 4 gets underway. With Ganguly serving as head coach and Pollock as assistant coach, Maharaj believes the Capitals have assembled a world-class coaching setup that can help them challenge for the title.
“Really exciting to have legends amongst our coaching staff”
Speaking ahead of SA20 Season 4, which runs from December 26, 2025 to January 25, 2026, Maharaj expressed his enthusiasm about collaborating with two of the game’s greats:
“Yeah, obviously it’s my first year with Pretoria Capitals. Managed to have a couple of conversations with Sourav sir, so really excited to get stuck in,” Maharaj said during a JioStar Press Room interaction.
He praised the two warm-up games as “wonderful opportunities to sort of put the plans into place and the style of cricket that we want to play.”
“It’s really exciting. We’ve got some legends of the game amongst our coaching staff and looking forward to feeding off their knowledge and energy come the competition,” he added.
Ganguly and Pollock: A formidable coaching duo
The appointment of Sourav Ganguly as head coach and Shaun Pollock as assistant coach gives Pretoria Capitals one of the most decorated coaching teams in franchise cricket:
Sourav Ganguly, widely regarded as one of India’s greatest captains, led the Men in Blue to 21 Test wins and 76 ODI victories during his tenure from 2000 to 2005. He transformed India into a formidable overseas force and is credited with nurturing a generation of match-winners.
Shaun Pollock, South Africa’s legendary all-rounder, captained the Proteas and was one of the finest seam bowlers of his era, finishing with 421 Test wickets and 393 ODI wickets. His tactical acumen and all-round expertise make him an ideal deputy to Ganguly.
Together, they bring decades of international experience, leadership pedigree, and a deep understanding of high-pressure cricket to the Capitals.
Pretoria’s high-scoring challenge
Maharaj acknowledged that SuperSport Park in Centurion—home of the Pretoria Capitals—is traditionally a high-scoring venue, which will shape the team’s tactical approach:
“I think generally Pretoria is a high-scoring ground, so I think you want to allow the batters to do their job and find ways as a bowler to combat that,” Maharaj explained.
As the Capitals’ captain and lead spinner, Maharaj will play a crucial role in containing opposition batting lineups on flat tracks where run rates often soar above 10 per over.
The South African left-arm spinner has built a reputation as one of the world’s most effective T20 slow bowlers, and his ability to operate in the powerplay and death overs will be vital to Pretoria’s plans.
SA20 as a feeder system for South African cricket
SA20 Commissioner Graeme Smith highlighted the league’s success in developing domestic talent and feeding the national pipeline:
“I think our role at SA20 from the beginning, we’ve always said that we want to put 50, 60 players on the global map every year, expose them to the best possible cricket and help develop the player pool around the national teams,” Smith said.
“Over the last couple of years, we’ve certainly seen a lot of players develop their game, go from talented youngsters to great international cricketers.”
Smith credited the players and national team for their strong performances over the past two years, but emphasized that the SA20 has played a key role in accelerating the development of South Africa’s cricketing depth.
SA20 Season 4: What to expect
The fourth edition of the SA20 kicks off on December 26, 2025, and runs through January 25, 2026, with all matches broadcast live on JioHotstar and the Star Sports Network. The tournament features six franchises—Pretoria Capitals, Joburg Super Kings, Durban Super Giants, Paarl Royals, MI Cape Town, and Sunrisers Eastern Cape—competing in a high-octane format that has quickly established itself as one of the premier T20 leagues globally.
For Pretoria Capitals, the combination of Maharaj’s on-field leadership and the strategic nous of Ganguly and Pollock could be the formula that propels them to their first SA20 title.