Hobart Hurricanes sign Suzie Bates as an overseas replacement player for upcoming edition of WBBL

Veteran New Zealand Women's batter Suzie Bates has been signed by the Hobart Hurricanes as an overseas replacement player for the upcoming Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) season. Bates who was initially overlooked in the WBBL draft has gotten another opportunity to be part of the league.

The 37-year-old, who is the highest run-getter in WT20Is, will step in to replace England's Danni Wyatt-Hodge. Wyatt-Hodge is set to depart for South Africa with the England team, leaving a void in the Hurricanes' lineup for the latter part of the tournament.

Bates brings a wealth of experience to the Hurricanes, having previously represented Adelaide Strikers, Sydney Sixers, and Perth Scorchers in earlier WBBL seasons.

Also Read: Women's Big Bash League 2024 Standings

She would be the perfect replacement for Danni: Salliann Beams

With 100 WBBL matches under her belt across eight seasons, the Hurricanes will be pleased to have her on their side. Salliann Beams, General Manager of High Performance at Hurricanes, spoke about Bates' signing.

"Bringing Suzie into our WBBL squad just made sense as soon as we saw she was not selected in the WBBL|10 Draft, we thought she would be the perfect replacement for Danni once we knew her availability. She provides more than 130 games of World T20 cricket and will give us an experienced operator when we lose someone of Danni's ability in our line-up," Beams said in a statement as quoted by Cricbuzz.

Meanwhile, Bates will join the Hurricanes for the last three games of the tournament, potentially extending her stay if the team qualifies for the finals. Bates will join the Hurricanes' roaster which already includes overseas talent like Chloe Tryon and Lizelle Lee.