Johannesburg, Sep 12 (IANS): Over 300 cricketers will go under the hammer in the inaugural SA20 player auction, scheduled to take place in Cape Town on September 19.

More than 500 players had registered their interest for the auction, with the list cut down to 318 following the submission of shortlists from the six franchises. The auction will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, with teams going head-to-head to bid for some of the best local and international T20 talent to complete their squads.

Notably, a total of 22 players on the list have been pre-signed by the franchises and teams will spend their remaining R34 million ($2 million) salary budget during the auction.

"We are thrilled with the interest received from the cricket community to be a part of the SA20. The final list of players has an exciting mix of international stars, the class of Proteas players and upcoming talent waiting to make a name for themselves on a global stage," said Graeme Smith, SA20 League Commissioner in a release.

"We are looking forward to the auction and seeing how the squads are formed for this exciting first edition of the SA20," he added.

Other countries represented include Australia, West Indies, England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Scotland, Afghanistan, Ireland, Hong Kong, USA, Netherlands and Namibia.