Brisbane Heat on Sunday (December 13) announced the signing of “highly-credentialled” England batsman Joe Denly for the remainder of the ongoing KFC Big Bash League (BBL) 2020-21.
Denly has been added to Heat’s squad as a replacement for the fellow Englishman Tom Banton after the latter withdrew due to 'bubble' fatigue having spent long periods in isolated bio-secure training and playing environments across the year.
The 37-year-old batsman played 11 games for the Sydney Sixers in the seventh and eighth season of the BBL and now set to turn up for the Brisbane Heat in the tournament next month.
He will arrive in Australia early next week and join the Heat squad in the first week of January after completing a mandatory two weeks in hotel quarantine.
Confirming the signing of Joe, Heat coach Darren Lehmann said: “Joe has a reputation of having a cool head in pressure situations and I can see him helping to control our innings, whether chasing or setting a target. We have said all along that this year’s BBL is going to be a squad game and we need to be adaptable and confident in our plans.”
Lehmann concluded, “As well as his obvious batting skills, Joe can be a good sounding board for our younger players and of course, give his insights around the group. We’re pretty excited to welcome such a classy and well-credentialled player to the club.”
Noteworthy, the Kent batsman’s signing can prove vital for the Heat in the BBL 2020-21 being an experienced cricketer having scored more than 10,000 first-class runs and nearly 5000 in limited-overs cricket. Denly has also played 15 Tests, 16 ODIS, and 13 T20 Internationals for England so far.
The right-hander has also played 213 T20 matches across England, Pakistan, Bangladesh, BBL, and the Indian Premier League, and scored four centuries and 30 half-centuries in the format so far. He is also a handy leg-spin bowler, as he scalped 68 first-class wickets.
(With IANS Inputs)
