Kyle Simmonds — the spinner who bats down the order

Two skills, one squad place

Simmonds was retained because he covers two jobs at once. He bowls slow left-arm orthodox spin through the middle overs and he bats well enough to matter at seven or eight — the combination every T20 captain wants, because it frees up a place for an extra specialist elsewhere.

With the ball, he is the control spinner who lets the wicket-takers attack. While Sunil Narine hunts wickets with his variations, Simmonds holds an end, builds dot-ball pressure, and picks up the batters who try to hit their way out of trouble. At Kingsmead, where the surface can grip for spin, his overs become some of the hardest to score from.

With the bat, he is the late-innings insurance. A quick 20 from number eight can be the difference between a par total and a winning one, and Simmonds has the power to clear the rope. His runs tend to come when the innings needs them most.

Control with the ball, runs at the end

Simmonds lengthens the batting and steadies the bowling. That is the whole point of a spin-bowling all-rounder.

Paired with Simon Harmer’s off-spin and Narine’s mystery, Simmonds gives Aiden Markram three different spin looks to rotate through the middle overs. Batters cannot settle against one type of spin when the next over brings another — and Simmonds is the left-arm option that completes the set.

A settled squad, still chasing the first title

Durban’s Super Giants kept 18 players and bought nobody at the auction, so the spin group Simmonds returns to is the one he already knows. Aiden Markram captains, Lance Klusener coaches, and Kingsmead in Durban hosts five home league games in Season 5.

The SA20 season starts on Sunday 17 January 2027, with the Super Giants’ first home game against Sunrisers Eastern Cape on 21 January. See the full SA20 Schedule for the fixtures, and the SA20 Players index for every squad. Simmonds may not play every game — but in a long season, his turn will come.