Cricket Wellington is pleased to confirm the signing of Australian fast bowler Brett Lee, who will join the Wellington Firebirds for December’s HRV Cup domestic Twenty20 competition.
Lee will play for the Wellington Firebirds throughout the second half of the HRV Cup. He will make his debut for the Firebirds in round five on Tuesday 14 December at the Basin Reserve against the Auckland Aces. He will miss Wellington’s Twenty20 match on 23 December against the Canterbury Wizards at Timaru due to a clash with his New South Wales State side. He is available for the HRV Cup Final on 2 January.
Cricket Wellington Chief Executive Gavin Larsen says Lee will undoubtedly light up the competition.
“It’s tremendous to have secured the services of Brett and his record speaks for itself,” Larsen said. “He is a gifted all-round athlete who has proven himself a true match winner for Australia in over a decade at the highest level.”
“All cricket followers enjoy seeing fast bowlers at the top of their game and it’s a mouthwatering prospect having Brett bowling at top pace for the Firebirds. I know Wellingtonians will relish the thought of watching him take on the best batsmen in the HRV Cup.”
Lee recorded his fastest ever delivery in an ODI against New Zealand in March 2005 in Napier, sending down a 160.8 km/h (99.9 mph) thunderbolt to Craig Cumming.
Wellington Firebirds Head Coach Anthony Stuart, who is a former NSW team-mate and played in Lee's State debut in 1997/98, adds that Lee will be a great asset to the team.
“Not only will Brett run in hard and provide a cutting edge to our attack, he will also offer us extra batting power in the middle to lower order and he is a top fielder. Off the park, he is a great bloke who I’m sure will contribute immensely to the Firebirds’ Twenty20 squad.”
Lee joins England all-rounder Luke Wright in the Firebirds for the HRV Cup. Wright is contracted for the entire HRV Cup competition.
Lee returned from injuries to State cricket yesterday for NSW in an Australian domestic One-Day match against Western Australia in Sydney, taking 2 for 37 off 11 overs as part of a 5-wicket win for his side. Prior to this game, Lee played his most recent match for his Kings XI Punjab IPL side in April. He was subsequently sidelined during the ICC Twenty20 World Cup in May with an arm injury.
He retired from Test cricket in December 2008 as the fourth most successful Australian bowler of all time with 310 wickets in 76 matches. He also has 324 ODI wickets from 186 matches. He last played for Australia in an ODI against India in October 2009.
Australian Cricketer of the Year in 2008, Lee has played 36 Twenty20 matches and 17 Twenty20 Internationals, making his international debut in the shortest version of the game in the first ever Twenty20 international against New Zealand in Auckland in February 2005. In 27 matches across all three forms of the game against the BLACKCAPS, Lee has taken 98 wickets. In his only appearance on the Basin Reserve, in a Test in March 2000, he took 6 wickets for 136 runs.
