- Colin de Grandhomme played in 29 Tests and scored 1,432 runs for New Zealand.
- The 36-year-old all-rounder quit the Black Caps because he was picked up by Adelaide Strikers.
- Follows in the footsteps of Trent Boult who also asked to be let out of his central contract.
Colin de Grandhomme got out of his central contract and joined Australia’s Big Bash League on Wednesday. He is the second New Zealand cricket player to do so after Trent Boult.
The 36-year-old all-rounder quit the Black Caps because he was picked up by the Adelaide Strikers. This made the New Zealand Cricket bosses sad.
De Grandhomme, who was born in Zimbabwe, played in 29 Tests and scored 1,432 runs. He also played in 45 one-day games and 41 Twenty20 internationals.
De Grandhomme is following in the footsteps of key fast bowler Boult, who also asked to be let out of his central contract and signed with Melbourne Stars in the BBL, one of the lucrative T20 tournaments that have sprung up around the world.
Between them, they have played in more than 100 Test matches, and two of them were two of the 20 players who were centrally contracted for the next season, which includes the T20 World Cup in Australia in October.
Boult, who is 33 years old, stayed on New Zealand’s team for the one-day internationals against Australia in September. However, New Zealand Cricket said that in the future, contracted players will be given more consideration.
De Grandhomme and Boult couldn’t play in the BBL because they had contracts with New Zealand Cricket. The BBL starts in December.
New Zealand Cricket’s head of high performance, Bryan Stronach, said that De Grandhomme was a loss.
“He’s a dynamic player, he has his power-hitting, but he is an all-rounder and his accuracy with the ball is quite phenomenal,” he said.
Stronach is sure that no other Black Caps will do what Boult and De Grandhomme have done.
“We don’t think there is going to be a mass exodus or anything like that,” he told reporters, adding that their exit “creates opportunities” for up-and-coming players.
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