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.”