Star Australian left-hander, Usman Khawaja, has committed to the Sydney Thunder for the next two seasons.
Khawaja, who topped both the batting averages and runs scored for the Thunder last season, will be another vital cog in the re-vamped Thunder batting line-up. He will form part of a talented group of left-handers, alongside David Warner, Mike Hussey and Eoin Morgan, that will provide the ‘engine’ of the Thunder top order.
He is presently in superb form, having posted three scores in the sixties out of four innings in the current Ryobi Cup for Queensland.
Khawaja expressed delight at re-committing to the Thunder: “I’m very happy to be re-signing with the Sydney Thunder. A lot of work has taken place in the past few months to re-build the Thunder squad and with the talent that is available I’m confident that the team will go into this season’s BBL in a positive frame of mind. The management have made some shrewd signings and I’m looking forward to working closely with Michael Clarke and Mike Hussey to build a strong culture at the club and to work closely with the younger players to create a winning attitude.”
Sydney Thunder General Manager Nick Cummins was equally enthusiastic about having Khawaja back on board: “Usman is a quality player and his experience and class will be great to have amongst the playing group this year. He was our best performed batsman last season and I am looking forward to his composure and cool head under pressure strengthening our top order. He has been around the game at the highest level for a while now and will be another vital part of our leadership group.”
The Thunder start their campaign with a ‘derby’ match against the Sixers at the SCG on Saturday 21 December.
The current Thunder contracted list is:
Michael Clarke (C)
Mike Hussey
Cameron Borgas
Ryan Carters
Scott Coyte
Luke Doran
Luke Feldman
Jason Floros
Daniel Hughes
Usman Khawaja
Eoin Morgan
Dirk Nannes
Kurtis Patterson
Gurinder Sandhu
Chris Tremain
David Warner
Thunder fixtures:
Dec 21, 2013 Sydney Sixers vs Sydney Thunder, SCG – 7-15pm
Dec 27, 2013 Sydney Thunder vs Adelaide Strikers, ANZ Stadium – 7-40pm
Jan 1, 2014 Sydney Thunder vs Melbourne Stars, ANZ Stadium – 7-40pm
Jan 3, 2014 Perth Scorchers vs Sydney Thunder, WACA – 4-40pm
Jan 8, 2014 Sydney Thunder vs Brisbane Heat, ANZ Stadium – 7-40pm
Jan 11, 2014 Hobart Hurricanes vs Sydney Thunder, Blundstone Arena – 1-45pm
Jan 14, 2014 Melbourne Renegades vs Sydney Thunder, Etihad Stadium – 7-40pm
Jan 25, 2014 Sydney Thunder vs Sydney Sixers, ANZ Stadium – 7-15pm
Membership
Become a Thunder Member at: www.sydneythunder.com.au/membership
