Sydney Thunder bolstered its line-up for BBL|09 by recruiting one of the world’s most exciting Twenty20 batsmen, Englishman Alex Hales.
Hales arrived in Sydney from South Africa where he blasted an unbeaten 97 runs from just 55 deliveries in the Mzansi Super League.
Earlier this year he dominated England’s Vitality T20 Blast competition. He was named the Notts Outlaws player of the season after scoring 418 runs – including five half centuries – at an average of 38.
The big-hitting 30-year-old has played 11 Tests, 70 One-Day Internationals and 60 T20 International matches for England.
Sydney Thunder Head Coach Shane Bond on Hales:
“He’s one of the best T20 batters in the world. To have someone of his quality available for the whole tournament for us is a great pick up.
“I spent a little bit of time with him at the Mumbai Indians and came up against him when I coached New Zealand and he smacked us a number of times.
“He’s one of the most destructive batters, is an outstanding fielder and is also obviously a highly experienced player.
“He’s highly respected at Notts and does a great job with their young players. With players like Sangha, Gilkes and Davies, to have someone who has been there and done that, Alex has played in leagues all around the world and is an outstanding batsman in this format. To have someone like him to learn off is perfect.
“Obviously Alex is on the outer with the England squad at the moment, but I think he’s still got a lot to offer so hopefully this is another chance for him to show his maturity and make a claim for the T20 World Cup next year.”
