Chris Morris backs Aiden Markram to spark bidding war at SA20 auction

NEW DELHI: With the SA20 auction around the corner, former South African all-rounder Chris Morris expects Aiden Markram to be among the biggest draws when bidding begins on September 9 in Johannesburg."Sunrisers haven't retained him, but they do have a right-to-match card, meaning they can match the final bid for him and retain his services," Morris said, as quoted by SA20."That opens the door for mind games -- other teams could bid aggressively to push his price high enough to make it difficult for the Sunrisers to bring him back," he added.Morris pointed to two franchises that could target the Proteas batter."Two teams stand out to me: MI Cape Town, which would solve their captaincy question -- not that Rashid Khan is doing a bad job -- but having a successful local international captain at number four would be a big boost, especially since they've released Rassie van der Dussen, leaving a vacancy at number three. The other is Pretoria Capitals, who have one of the largest remaining purses. He's a local player, would fill their captaincy role, slot in at number three, and bring strong leadership after Rilee Rossouw's stint last year. Either way, Aiden Markram is going to be hot property," he said.The SA20 has grown quickly since its inception, with last year’s auction attracting nearly 600 player registrations from around the world. This year’s retained and pre-signed list already features big names such as Nicholas Pooran, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, and England’s Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow.Each franchise was allowed a maximum of six retained or pre-signed players during the retention window, which closed on July 18, comprising up to three South African and three overseas players. Teams have also completed their six wildcard signings, with attention now shifting to the remaining slots. A total purse of USD 7.4 million will be spent to fill the 84 available places at the September 9 auction in Johannesburg.For Season 4, a wildcard player could be any overseas cricketer or a South African who was part of the team’s squad in Season 3. The new season begins on December 26, with the auction expected to set the tone for another blockbuster edition of South Africa’s premier T20 competition.