“I am super happy, humbled and privileged to accept the opportunity as the captain of the DSG franchise in the next SA20 league,” Maharaj said in a video released by the franchise on Friday. “I am super excited, being a Durban boy – been here 18 years of my life, and it’s a place that I call home for me. So I am hoping I can bring some performances from domestic cricket into the SA20, from a leadership perspective and from a player’s perspective.”

Former South Africa captain de Kock, a part of the squad at both the Super Giants franchises – Lucknow in the IPL and Durban in the SA20 – led the team in the inaugural season of the six-team South African league, where they finished one off the bottom after winning four of their ten games (the same as third- and fourth-placed Sunrisers Eastern Cape and Paarl Royals, respectively, but behind them on net run-rate). De Kock was one of the better performers with the bat for the team, scoring 271 runs at a strike rate of 151.39 in nine innings.

“I’d like to thank Quinny for all the hard work that he has done on and off the field,” Maharaj said. “However, his job is not over. He is still a leader within the team and his experience and knowledge of the game is invaluable to this unit. And it’s going to be a large and integral part to play for us in terms of bringing the trophy to Durban this year.”

He has, however, been looked at as a leader in South African cricket, and has led the national side in seven ODIs and five T20Is between 2021 and 2022.