AUSTRALIAN off-spinning all-rounder Chris Green will no longer be joining Birmingham Bears for this year’s Vitality Blast tournament.
Green, 26, was due to return to Edgbaston as Bears captain for the 2020 Vitality Blast but, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak and the delayed start to the season, recently-appointed club captain Will Rhodes will now skipper in T20 cricket alongside his First Class and List A roles.
“All of the Cricket Management Team and players think the world of Chris,” said Bears sport director Paul Farbrace.
“Nobody should forget the commitment he showed to the Bears last summer by coming into the side for our Vitality Blast home match with Notts Outlaws within 24 hours after completing a match in the Global T20 Canada.
“These are unfortunate circumstances and sadly the impact of COVID is something every cricket club and organisation is feeling.
“Chris is a true professional. His willingness to support the club and his way of dealing with this has been exemplary. We certainly hope we can bring him back to Edgbaston as a Bear soon.”
T20 specialist Green is a long-term member of the Sydney Thunder squad in the Big Bash League in his native Australia and for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League. He was also signed by Kolkota Knight Riders in the 2020 IPL auction.
The Australian joined the Bears in last year’s Vitality Blast as a replacement for the injured Ashton Agar and he went on to play the final six games of the tournament.
