Sydney Thunder captain Mike Hussey wants to play cricket for Western Australia again, but he’s not sure whether Warriors coach Justin Langer will accept his offer.
Langer was left shocked and disappointed when Hussey turned down the chance to play for the Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash this season in order to link up with the Thunder on a lucrative deal.
Hussey, a legend of WA cricket, is keen to play out the rest of the Sheffield Shield season with the Warriors.
Langer was eager to include Hussey in the Warriors’ set-up at the start of the season.
But it remains unclear whether Hussey’s defection to the Thunder has now ruined his chances of playing the latter stages of the Shield season.
“I love WA cricket and I’ve been a big part of it over a long period of time,” Hussey said ahead of Friday’s showdown between the Scorchers and Thunder at the WACA.
“That was my message to JL and (WACA chief executive) Christina Matthews when I retired from international cricket – that I want to help out in whatever way I can.
“If that means playing some games, then that’s great. If that means working behind the scenes with some younger guys, then I’d love to do that as well.
“And if they don’t want me to be part of it at all, then I’m fine with that as well. It’s a bit in his court really.”
Langer said although he didn’t agree with Hussey’s move to the Thunder, it hadn’t affected their friendship.
“I’ve learned very quickly in this job that you have to divorce personal and professional (relationships),” Langer said earlier in the day.
“Huss and I have been friends for a long time and will remain friends forever.
“Of course it was disappointing that he left the Scorchers and we’re seeing that now (how costly it is) to lose that experience in the middle order.
“But that’s the business we’re in.”
Hussey denied his move to the Thunder was a case of abandoning his cricket roots.
“I am a West Australian through and through, but I see T20 as something different,” Hussey said.
“It’s something new; it’s something fresh.”
Hussey has been in hot form for the Thunder, but it hasn’t been enough for them to snap a 16-match losing streak that dates back to December 2011.
Perth (1-2) will be boosted by the return of veteran batsman Adam Voges, who has made a quicker-than-expected recovery from a shoulder injury.
Scorchers (from): Simon Katich (capt), Yasir Arafat, Michael Beer, Jason Behrendorff, Ryan Duffield, Brad Hogg, Mitch Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Craig Simmons, Alfonso Thomas, Ashton Turner, Adam Voges, Sam Whiteman.
Thunder (from): Mike Hussey (capt), Ryan Carters, Scott Coyte, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Luke Feldman, Jason Floros, Kurtis Patterson, Cameron Borgas, Eoin Morgan, Dirk Nannes, Gurinder Sandhu, Chris Tremain, Daniel Hughes.
Build your own fantasy cricket team and put it to the test with Draftstars daily fantasy competitions. Pick your match, pick your team and watch the points roll in to take out cash prizes on each match. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit.
As wife Alyssa Healy watches on, Mitchell Starc was back in form, taking three wickets in an over including the dangerous Tim David, to…
Joe Root was showing some brotherly love, giving his younger sibling Billy a chance in their county match.
Australia have reclaimed top spot in the ICC's Test rankings, replacing India. Despite not playing since winning 2-0 in New Zealand in March, Pat…
Yashasvi Jaiswal was looking comfortable at 67 off 40, until this moment when he hit the ball into his own stumps!
The Aussie made his 50 off 37 balls, for his fourth half-century of the season as his Sunrisers Hyderabad went on to beat Rajasthan…
Insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. This quote is often attributed to Albert Einstein, but nobody knows if he…
