BBL 06: Carlos Brathwaite To Head Home After Sydney Thunder’s Next Game
Jan 16, 2017 at 12:29 PM
West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite has revealed Wednesday (January 18) night’s game for Sydney Thunder would be his last in the ongoing season of Big Bash League.
The young cricketer will then head back home to take part in a local 50-over tournament as he had already given a commitment to Barbados earlier.
The 28-year-old became an instant hit in BBL after he came in as a replacement for the injured Andre Russell. He took five wickets in the last two BBL games for Sydney Thunder.
Brathwaite, who rose to fame after his for consecutive sixes in the last over of the 2016 World T20 final in April last year, was on a holiday in Europe before flying to Australia to participate in the tournament.
The Caribbean all-rounder was forced to borrow bowling spikes from teammate Pat Cummins and a couple of bats from fellow Bajan and Hobart Hurricanes WBBL player Hayley Matthews for his first match with the Thunder as he didn’t have his cricket gear while on holiday.
“I was a bit nervous to be honest,” Brathwaite told bigbash.com.au after his first game against the Hurricanes.
“I hadn’t put any gym work in or any practice in the lead-up. I only bowled off five steps in the two practice days we had before.
“But it was probably for the better, I didn’t have any demons in my mind. It was just a matter of getting out there and trusting my instincts.”
Sydney Thunder cannot replace Carlos Brathwaite if the all-rounder leaves as the BBL rules suggest that an overseas player will have to feature in at least one game of the season to be eligible to play in the finals.
The team can use a local player to replace the West Indies T20 captain but the team management is confident of persuading Brathwaite to stay if they make the finals of BBL 06.