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Jhye Richardson has been called up by the Perth Scorchers for the Top End T20 event in Darwin, and he will likely play his first game in Australia since January in the coming weeks.
The most prominent member of the Scorchers’ roster, which is primarily composed of younger players from the WA academy and the edges of the BBL and Western Australia teams, is Richardson.
Since hurting himself during the BBL, Richardson, who was awarded a contract by Cricket Australia in March, hasn’t participated in a game at home. Earlier in the year, he played in one IPL game for the Delhi Capitals.
He participated in an Australia training camp this week in Brisbane, but the selectors decided to take a longer look in the hopes that he would overcome the injury concerns that have plagued his international career, thus he was not considered for the tour of Scotland and England next month. Before suffering a side strain during the previous season, he was scheduled to make his ODI comeback against the West Indies.
“He’s fit and firing now, and again looking for match opportunities,” national selector George Bailey said last month. “I think he’ll get opportunities again across the summer.”
Fellow fast Matt Kelly, whose season was also cut short by injury, will be joining Richardson on the squad. Captain Sam Fanning, a batsman who relocated to Western Australia from New South Wales, is also named Baxter Holt.
“We also see this tournament as an opportunity for Jhye and Kells [Matt Kelly] to find touch in a competitive environment,” stand-in coach Tim MacDonald said. “They didn’t play a lot of cricket last year but they’re a big part of what we do at the Scorchers and WA, so we’re looking forward to seeing both of them back in action.”