Indian cricketer Harmanpreet Kaur’s contract with Sydney Thunder has been extended for another two years after the Women’s Big Bash League franchise got the paperwork done on Friday, the last day to contract players for the upcoming season that starts on December 9.
Kaur, who was the first Indian to be part of the Women’s Big Bash setup last year, was instrumental in helping the Indian women’s cricket team reach the ICC Women’s World Cup final earlier this year — scoring 359 runs in eight innings at an average of 59.83 and a staggering strike rate of 95.47.
Her inaugural season in the Big Bash League wasn’t that bad either. She scored 296 runs with the bat for the Thunder and picked up another six wickets, including a four-for against Melbourne Stars.
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And even though the side failed to go through to the play-offs, Harmanpreet Kaur was adjudged as the player of the season by the franchise.
Thunder coach Jo Broadbent seemed extremely pleased with the signing. “She’s a match-winner and that’s what you need in T20, you need those match-winners. She’s got that really good blend of technique and power, she really works on the basics. She’s just incredible and such a great person to have. Her bat does most of the talking” Broadbent was quoted by ESPNCricinfo as saying to adelaidenow.com.au.
{{/usCountry}}Thunder coach Jo Broadbent seemed extremely pleased with the signing. “She’s a match-winner and that’s what you need in T20, you need those match-winners. She’s got that really good blend of technique and power, she really works on the basics. She’s just incredible and such a great person to have. Her bat does most of the talking” Broadbent was quoted by ESPNCricinfo as saying to adelaidenow.com.au.
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“Normally in the women’s (T20) game if you get your run rate up to eight runs an over, you rarely see players explode and get over 10 runs an over and do that for four or five overs. She can do that. If we had to get 10 or 12 runs an over and she was in the middle, you’d almost be backing her to win a game,” she added.
Thunder general manager Lee Germon, too, was excited with Kaur’s re-signing. Terming Kaur as “one of the hottest properties”, Germon stated: “Following the Women’s World Cup, Harmanpreet was the hottest property in cricket. “She showed during that tournament, and through her performances with the Thunder, that she is one of, if not the most, destructive batters in the game at the moment.”