Andre Russell Is Set For A Shock Return To The Big Bash League 2021 With The Melbourne Stars

Dec 8, 2021 at 3:15 PM

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Andre Russell Is Set For A Shock Return To The Big Bash League 2021 With The Melbourne Stars

Andre Russell, West Indies T20 superstar is set for a shock return to the KFC BBL with the Melbourne Stars in a major coup for the tournament. One of the best and most destructive batsmen especially in the shortest white-ball format when fully fit, the 33-year-old Jamaican will join the Melbourne Stars for a five-game stint, beginning with their first home game of BBL|11 when they host his previous franchise Sydney Thunder at the MCG this Friday.

The Sydney Thunder, coincidentally, is the club Andre Russell previously played for across three seasons from 2014 to 2017. The recent development was confirmed just a day after the Melbourne Stars revealed the surprise addition to Pakistan speedster Haris Rauf to their team; as he will play his first game on December 27 and remain with the side for the rest of the season.

Andre Russell previously played 19 matches for Sydney Thunder across three seasons from 2014 to 2017 © Getty
Andre Russell previously played 19 matches for Sydney Thunder across three seasons from 2014 to 2017 © Getty

Andre Russell Previously Played 19 Games For Sydney Thunder From 2014-2017 Before Being Banned For A Year For 3 Doping Rule Violations

Andre Russell played 19 games for the Sydney Thunder as aforementioned across the three seasons, with his last BBL appearance coming in early January 2017 when he has stretchered off Spotless Stadium in a game against the Melbourne Stars. The next month he was banned from the sport for a year for three doping whereabouts rule violations dating from 2015 and has not been back to Australia since.

Andre Russell Image Source: Twitter
Andre Russell Image Source: Twitter

His BBL career to date has yielded 296 runs from 17 innings at an incredible strike rate of 166.29 and included 21 sixes. He has also taken 23 wickets with an economy rate of 7.97. The right-handed power hitter comes into BBL|11 on the back of a stunning 90 not out off just 32 balls (nine fours and seven sixes) in a player-of-the-match performance in the Abu Dhabi T10 2021 final on Saturday night.

Andre Russell Went Through A Lean Ptch In 2021 T20I World Cup And Missed 7 IPL 2021 Games For Kolkata Knight Riders Including Final

Prior to that Andre Russell went through a lean patch in the 2021 T20I World Cup after returning from a hamstring injury he sustained early in the second leg of the IPL, scoring just 25 runs in five innings and taking three wickets as the West Indies, one of the pre-tournament favourites, were bundled out with just one win.

The injury meant Andre Russell only played three games of 10 games for the Kolkata Knight Riders when the tournament resumed in the UAE in September and missed the final where his side went down to Chennai Super Kings by 27 runs. He was at his explosive best in the first half of the tournament in India in April, striking 163 runs from seven innings and collecting seven wickets, including a haul of 5-15. KKR though retained him for IPL 2022.

Andre Russell. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI)
Andre Russell. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI)

Andre Russell also destroyed Australia during their five-match T20 series in the Caribbean in July with scores of 51 from 28 balls, 24 not out from eight balls, and 24 not out from 13 balls in the 4-1 series win for the West Indies. The West Indian match winner is a veteran of T20 with 387 games to his name, 6430 runs including a highest score of 121 not out, and 343 wickets.

Andre Russell has won T20 competitions all over the world –which will be a boost for the title-less Melbourne Stars – including two T20 World Cups, two in the Caribbean Premier League, two in the Bangladesh Premier League, a Pakistan Super League crown, and the BBL with Sydney Thunder in 2015-16. He said the opportunity to play at the MCG is what drew him to the Melbourne Stars.

“I always try to test my skills and it’s a big ground – when I signed guys were saying ‘see how many sixes you can hit’,” Russell said during broadcast of Day 1 of the Ashes Test at the Gabba.

“Once you’re in the moment you may hit one into the stands on one of the big sides. I’m just here to experience as well and showcase my talent. (I’m) happy to be part of the Big Bash once more, it’s been a couple of years, so I’m looking forward to it. The guys went down in the first game and I’m definitely here to give the guys a boost and hopefully I can contribute and help them cross the line.”

His inclusion comes at a welcome time for the injury-plagued Melbourne Stars who were thrashed by the Sydney Sixers in the season opener on Sunday by a BBL record margin. Glenn Maxwell, the skipper said despite the injuries, they have plenty of options to choose from.

“We’ve had a lot of injuries, a lot of guys yet to turn up,” captain Glenn Maxwell said after the match. It’s just put us behind where we would like to be for round one, but you can’t win the tournament from round one. We’re hoping (Marcus Stoinis) is going to be back next week. We’ve got (Nathan) Coulter-Nile, Joe Burns, Qais Ahmad … another overseas signing (Russell), so we’ve got plenty of options.”

Andre Russell is currently completing his mandatory 72 hours quarantine after flying into Sydney and will link up with the Melbourne Stars at their game against the Sydney Thunder on Friday.

Melbourne Stars were without Marcus Stoinis, Nathan Coulter-Nile, and Joe Burns while towering quick Billy Stanlake is set to miss the entire season due to a back injury. The high-profile Melbourne Stars surprisingly missed the playoffs last season and have yet to win a BBL title.

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