MI Cape Town 2027: Squad, Schedule and Auction Updates
MI Cape Town will play Betway SA20 Season 5 under captain Rashid Khan and head coach Robin Peterson. Their 13-player pre-auction squad includes Will Jacks and wildcard Kagiso Rabada, with six places still available. MICT begin their 2027 campaign against Joburg Super Kings at Newlands on 20 January.
MI Cape Town squad 2027: retained players and new signing
MI Cape Town have retained 12 players, including wildcard Kagiso Rabada, and pre-signed England all-rounder Will Jacks. The following list contains the 13 announced players. The squad will expand through the Season 5 auction.
The official MI Cape Town squad announcement confirms the retained group and Jacks’ arrival. Playing roles follow the club’s current player listings.
| Player | Country | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rashid Khan | Afghanistan | Bowling all-rounder | Retained; captain |
| Corbin Bosch | South Africa | All-rounder | Retained |
| Dane Piedt | South Africa | Bowler | Retained |
| George Linde | South Africa | Bowling all-rounder | Retained |
| Jason Smith | South Africa | Batter | Retained |
| Kagiso Rabada | South Africa | Bowler | Retained wildcard |
| Nicholas Pooran | West Indies | Wicketkeeper-batter | Retained |
| Reeza Hendricks | South Africa | Batter | Retained |
| Ryan Rickelton | South Africa | Wicketkeeper-batter | Retained |
| Thomas Kaber | South Africa | All-rounder | Retained |
| Tiaan van Vuuren | South Africa | All-rounder | Retained |
| Tristan Luus | South Africa | Bowler | Retained; Under-23 |
| Will Jacks | England | All-rounder | Pre-signed |
MI Cape Town schedule 2027
MI Cape Town’s first match is against Joburg Super Kings at Newlands on 20 January 2027, starting at 17:30 SAST. That is 20:30 in Pakistan and 21:00 in India.
MICT play ten league matches, split evenly between home and away. All dates below are in 2027; times are South African Standard Time, SAST (UTC+2).
| Date | Opponent | Home/away | Venue | SAST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 January | Joburg Super Kings | Home | Newlands, Cape Town | 17:30 |
| 22 January | Paarl Royals | Home | Newlands, Cape Town | 17:30 |
| 24 January | Paarl Royals | Away | Boland Park, Paarl | 15:30 |
| 30 January | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Away | St George’s Park, Gqeberha | 13:00 |
| 2 February | Durban’s Super Giants | Home | Newlands, Cape Town | 17:30 |
| 4 February | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Home | Newlands, Cape Town | 17:30 |
| 6 February | Durban’s Super Giants | Away | Kingsmead, Durban | 13:00 |
| 10 February | Joburg Super Kings | Away | Wanderers, Johannesburg | 17:30 |
| 12 February | Pretoria Capitals | Away | SuperSport Park, Centurion | 17:30 |
| 14 February | Pretoria Capitals | Home | Newlands, Cape Town | 15:30 |
The opening week brings three matches in five days, including successive meetings with Paarl Royals on 22 and 24 January. MICT finish the league stage with home and away games against Pretoria Capitals on 12 and 14 February.
See the full SA20 2027 schedule for the other teams’ fixtures and playoff dates.
What has changed for MI Cape Town in Season 5?
Will Jacks is MI Cape Town’s new pre-auction signing. He joins a side retaining Rashid Khan, Nicholas Pooran, Kagiso Rabada and Ryan Rickelton, while several players from the previous campaign have not been retained.
Jacks already has experience within the wider MI franchise group. In his club interview, he identified Rabada as a teammate he was particularly looking forward to playing alongside and spoke about experiencing Newlands as a home player.
Players not retained for SA20 2027
SA20’s consolidated squad announcement lists nine players as not retained by MI Cape Town:
Trent Boult, Karim Janat, Dan Lategan, Tom Moores, Kieron Pollard, Dwaine Pretorius, Tabraiz Shamsi, Jacques Snyman and Rassie van der Dussen.
These players are outside the currently announced squad. The club has left open the possibility of released players returning through the auction.
MI Cape Town auction purse and remaining places
MI Cape Town have R9.35 million available for six places at the auction on 7 October 2026. This auction completes squads for the 2027 season.
| Recruitment detail | MI Cape Town status |
|---|---|
| Announced players | 13, including the wildcard |
| Available auction places | 6 |
| Remaining auction purse | R9.35 million |
| Confirmed wildcard | Kagiso Rabada |
| Required Under-23 addition | At least one more qualifying South African player |
| Full squad size | 19 players |
Rabada is already counted among the 13 players. MICT therefore need six further signings to reach 19, with no additional wildcard vacancy. Wildcard fees sit outside the league’s salary cap.
Tristan Luus is the retained Under-23 player. MICT must add at least one more South African who meets the league’s age requirement: 23 or younger on 16 January 2027.
Compare budgets and recruitment requirements in the SA20 2027 auction guide, based on the official Season 5 auction rules.
Who are MI Cape Town’s captain and coach?
Rashid Khan is MI Cape Town’s confirmed captain for Season 5. The Afghanistan leg-spinner remains in the retained squad.
Robin Peterson continues as head coach, a position he has held since Season 2.
Newlands: MI Cape Town’s home ground
MI Cape Town represent Cape Town, South Africa, and play their home matches at Newlands Cricket Ground. The venue sits beneath Table Mountain and is closely associated with the team’s blue and gold colours.
Newlands hosts all five of MICT’s home league fixtures. The 14 February match against Pretoria Capitals has an earlier 15:30 start; the other four begin at 17:30.
Who owns MI Cape Town?
SA20 lists MI Cape Town’s owner as Rise Worldwide Limited, a Reliance Industries Limited group company. The franchise belongs to the wider Mumbai Indians cricket family.
MI Cape Town compete in South Africa’s SA20, while Mumbai Indians play in the Indian Premier League. Compare MICT with the other SA20 teams.
MI Cape Town’s SA20 title and recent record
MI Cape Town have won one SA20 title, in 2025. They defeated Sunrisers Eastern Cape by 76 runs in the final at Wanderers on 8 February 2025.
Their title defence ended before the playoffs in 2026. A seven-wicket loss to Sunrisers Eastern Cape closed that campaign, after which Peterson identified inconsistency with both bat and ball as a problem.
For Season 5, MICT have kept their captain and coach while changing parts of the squad. The remaining six auction selections will complete the group trying to return to the playoffs.