County Championship | Somerset snap up Matthew Wade for 2020 season
Somerset have signed Australia's Matthew Wade for the opening seven games of the 2020 county championship season, the club confirmed on Monday. After piling tons of runs in Sheffield Shield, Wade found himself back in the Aussie Test team during the Ashes and is now a regular in the side.
The runners-up of the 2019 County Championship Division one, Somerset, have snapped up Australia's Matthew Wade for the first seven games of the 2020 County season. After giving up the gloves in order to stake his claim in the team as a specialist batsman, Wade amassed a staggering 1021 runs for Tasmania in the 2018/19 Sheffield Shield season - a run that earned him a Test recall in the Ashes. The 31-year-old has since featured in all of Australia's 8 Test matches post the Ashes, scoring two tons in the process.Â
"It's an exciting challenge and one that I'm looking forward to. I got a good taste of English conditions last summer and it'll be good to come back over and to hopefully contribute to Somerset winning matches in the County Championship," Wade was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.
"Somerset have got an excellent squad and I'm looking forward to meeting up with the guys and to getting out on the pitch with them. I'm told that Somerset have a bit of a history of Australian players doing well for the Club, so hopefully I can add my name to that list," he added.
Andy Hurry, Somerset's Director of Cricket, also expressed his delight over the signing of Wade and emphasized on the need to not just have world-class players, but also 'leaders' off the field. Hurry lavished praise on the Australian and stated that the wicket-keeper batsman will be an invaluable addition to the side.
"You want your overseas to be a world class performer, but you also need to look at what they will bring off the field. You want someone who is a leader on the pitch and someone who buys in to the Club ethos. Matthew Wade will tick every single box.
"He is a world class performer, he is extremely driven and he is a leader. He has vast experience and has captained Tasmania as well as leading Victoria to two Sheffield Shields. He was outstanding for Australia this summer with the bat and his record speaks for itself. We are delighted to have secured a player of his calibre for our opening seven County Championship matches of 2020."