Ahead of the new season in county cricket, various teams are looking to fill the overseas slots. Northamptonshire is the latest county to fill the overseas slot by signing one year deal with South African fast bowler Wayne Parnell. This will be the fourth county team for Parnell since his first season in England with Kent way back in 2009.
The 31-year-old speedster will be available for Northamptonshire’s first game against his former team Kent in the second week of April. As per the terms of this deal, Parnell will also be available for the white ball games for Northamptonshire. He is expected to arrive in the United Kingdom at the end of March to start training with the team for the new campaign.
After signing the deal with Northamptonshire, Parnell said, “I am delighted to be joining Northants for the 2021 season across all formats. I love county cricket and I hope I can contribute to the club being successful on all fronts. It’s an exciting squad with a really nice mix of youth and experience and I’m particularly looking forward to linking up with some old teammates in Richard Levi and Chris Liddle who is now the bowling coach.”
Parnell has endured a roller-coaster career with South Africa. He last played an international game for his country way back in 2017. The fast bowler was ineligible for international cricket after he signed a Kolpak deal with Worcestershire in 2018. He parted ways with the county in 2020 after the abolition of the Kolpak deal.
The South African fast bowler has also featured across various T-20 leagues in the world. He last played for Islamabad United in the Pakistan Premier League in 2019. Parnell also had stints in IPL with Delhi Daredevils and Pune Warriors at the start of last decade. Since he is only 31, Parnell still has time to force his way back in the South African team in the near future.
The county campaign is finally going to begin after the pandemic at the start of April. The English cricket is set to receive a major financial boost in the last week’s winter sports relief package announced by the United Kingdom Government.