Sunrisers Eastern Cape is a South African professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team that competes in the SA20 tournament. The team is based in Gqeberha, and was formed in 2022. The team's home-ground is St George's Park Cricket Ground. The team is coached by Adrian Birrell. The franchise is owned by the Indian SUN Group.
History In August 2022, Cricket South Africa announced the establishment of the SA20, a Twenty20 Cricket competition to be started in 2023. The teams for the competition, representing six cities, including the Eastern Cape, were put up on auction in September 2022. The franchise is owned by Kalanithi Maran of the Sun Group.
2023 season They were the champions of the first season of the tournament after they beat Pretoria Capitals by four wickets in the final at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg. Having successfully lead the team to their inaugural SA20 title, Markram was later appointed as the captain of Sunrisers Hyderabad for the 2023 season of the IPL.
2024 season The Sunrisers defended their title to become champions for a second time. They beat Durban's Super Giants by 89 runs in the final at Cape Town.
2025 season The season started poorly, with the Sunrisers losing their first three games, and after four games they were bottom of the log. However, they finished strongly, ending in third place and qualifying for the Eliminator.
In the knockout rounds, they defeated Joburg Super Kings in the Eliminator and then Paarl Royals in the 2nd Qualifier. However, they were comprehensively defeated by MI Cape Town in the final.
2026 season
Home ground
Sunrisers Eastern Cape play their home matches at St George's Park Cricket Ground in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The stadium, established in 1882, is one of the oldest cricket grounds in the country and has a seating capacity of approximately 19,000 spectators. It has hosted international Test, One Day International (ODI), and Twenty20 International (T20I) matches, as well as domestic competitions. Since the inaugural SA20 season in 2023, St George's Park has served as the home venue of Sunrisers Eastern Cape and is renowned for its vibrant atmosphere, with the club's supporters, known as the Orange Army, creating one of the most distinctive match-day experiences in the league.
The venue has witnessed several memorable moments in the franchise's history, including numerous home victories during their championship-winning SA20 campaigns. The ground is also known for its pace-friendly conditions, particularly under lights, which often provide assistance to fast bowlers while remaining conducive to stroke play as the innings progresses.
Current squad Players with international caps are listed in bold. +Sunrisers Eastern Cape rosterNameDate of BirthBatting StyleBowling StyleYear signedNotesBattersMatthew BreetzkeRight-handedRight-arm medium2025Jordan HermannLeft-handedRight-arm off break2025Mitchell van BuurenRight-handedRight-arm medium2025James ColesLeft-handedSlow left-arm orthodox2025CJ King2025JP King2025All-roundersMarco JansenLeft-handedLeft-arm fast2023Mitchell MarshRight-handedRight-arm fast-medium2026Pre-signingPatrick KrugerRight-handedRight-arm medium-fast2025Lewis GregoryRight-handedRight-arm medium-fast2025Senuran MuthusamyLeft-handedSlow left-arm orthodox2025Wicket-keepersTristan StubbsRight-handedRight-arm off break2025CaptainQuinton de KockLeft-handed2025BowlersAdam MilneRight-handedRight-arm fast2025Anrich NortjeRight-handedRight-arm fast2025Lutho SipamlaRight-handedRight-arm fast-medium2025Rishad HossainRight-handedRight-arm leg break2026Pre-signing
Administration and support staff +Sunrisers Eastern Cape staffPositionNameHead CoachAdrian BirrellAssistant CoachRussell DomingoBatting CoachBaakier AbrahamsBowling CoachCharl LangeveldtFielding CoachJimmy Kgamadi
Seasons Summaries SeasonFinalsCoachCaptainMost RunsMost WicketsRefs20234–5 (1 NR)3rdCAdrian BirrellAiden MarkramAiden Markram (366)Roelof van der Merwe (20)20247–31stCAdrian BirrellAiden MarkramTom Abell (319)Ottniel Baartman (18)20255–53rdRAdrian BirrellAiden MarkramDavid Bedingham (283)Marco Jansen (19)20268–21stCAdrian BirrellTristan StubbsQuinton de Kock (390)Anrich Nortje (18)2027
Tournament finishes Year League standing Final standing20233rd out of 6Champions20241st out of 6Champions20253rd out of 6Runners up 20261st out of 6Champions C: champions RU: runner-up SF team qualified for the semi-final stage of the competition
Season Statistics Year Played Wins Losses Tied/NR202312651202412921202513760 202613742 2027Source: ESPNCricinfo
Note:
NR indicates No result. Abandoned matches are indicated as no result. Records and statistics Most runs PlayerMatch RunsBatting averageHigh score100s50s Aiden Markram 36 967 34.53 100 1 5 Jordan Hermann 42 939 36.60 106* 1 4 Tristan Stubbs 48 915 36.60 66* 0 4 Marco Jansen 47 563 25.59 71* 0 3 Tom Abell 23 502 27.88 65 0 4 Source: as of 26 January 2026
Most wickets PlayerWicketsBowling averageBest bowling Marco Jansen 60 19.53 5/30 Ottniel Baartman 41 15.92 4/10 Liam Dawson 22 22.54 3/17 Roelof van der Merwe 20 9.55 6/20 Anrich Nortje 18 15.77 4/13 Source: as of 26 January 2026
Captains +List of Sunrisers Eastern Cape captains Captain Span Won Lost Tied Aiden Markram 2023–2025 36 22 13 0 1 61.11 Tristan Stubbs 2025–2026 12 7 4 0 1 58.33 Source:
References
External links Sunrisers section at the SA20 website.