3 foreign cricket stars who played as a local player in a T20 league
T20 Leagues have become an integral part of the cricket world. Many cricketers have improved their lifestyle by participating in T20 tournaments around the globe. Several cricket stars have even prioritized playing in the domestic T20 competitions over their national team.
Generally, the home cricket board focuses on developing local talent by organizing a T20 tournament. In the IPL, the BCCI allows only four foreign players in a playing XI. The Indian players form the core of any IPL squad.
IPL teams with top-quality Indian players have fared well in the league than franchises with big names in the overseas department. The same has been the case with other tournaments.
Of lat, some cricketers have concentrated more on foreign T20 leagues. To ensure that they do not prove to be burdensome for their respective clubs, a few overseas players have even considered playing under a local passport to not qualify as a foreign member in the squad.
In this article, we will look at those three foreign cricket stars who played in a T20 league as local players.
(Note: This list does not consider Kolpak deal players.)
3. Tanmay Mishra — Played international cricket for Kenya, a local player in the IPL
33-year-old Indian batsman Tanmay Mishra represented African nation Kenya at the international level from 2006 to 2013. The right-handed batsman played 42 ODIs and 15 T20Is for the 2003 Cricket World Cup semifinalists.
Mishra was born in Mumbai, and because he had an Indian passport, he enrolled himself in the IPL 2012 Auction as a local player. The Deccan Chargers signed him that year, and Tanmay made his IPL debut versus the Rajasthan Royals. Unfortunately, he did not get an opportunity to bat or bowl in that match.
Two years later, the Royal Challengers Bangalore signed him at his base price of ₹10 lakhs. Since the Bangalore-based franchise had some big names like Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel, Rilee Rossouw, Yuvraj Singh, and Albie Morkel in their squad, Tanmay did not get a single chance to play.
Currently, Tanmay Mishra plays domestic cricket for Tripura.
2. Morne Morkel — Played international cricket for South Africa, a local player in the BBL
South African speedster Morne Morkel tormented the batsmen at the international level for 12 years. The right-arm quick made a name for himself with his pace bowling skills as he scalped over 500 international wickets for the rainbow nation.
Morkel also played for the Kolkata Knight Riders, the Rajasthan Royals, and the Delhi Capitals (then Delhi Daredevils) in the IPL. The 36-year-old retired from all forms of international cricket in 2018.
Recently, he gained permanent residency in Australia as his wife Roz Kelly hails from Down Under. Brisbane Heat has signed Morkel as a local player for the ongoing BBL season.
1. Johan Botha — Played international cricket for South Africa, a local player in BBL
Former South African skipper Johan Botha played five Tests, 78 ODIs, and 40 T20Is for his country. The right-arm off-spinner even played 34 IPL games, representing the Rajasthan Royals, the Delhi Capitals, and the Kolkata Knight Riders.
The 38-year-old started playing Australian domestic leagues in 2012, and in 2016, he became an Australian citizen. After announcing his retirement from all forms of the game in 2019, Botha made a shocking comeback to cricket last week as he joined the Hobart Hurricanes as a replacement player.
Since Botha has Australian citizenship, he is representing the Hobart-based BBL team as a local player.