Ian Bell signs up with Perth Scorchers for BBL 2016-17

England batsman Ian Bell has signed-up with the Perth Scorchers for the Big Bash League 2016-17 which makes him the second major English cricketer to join the league for the approaching season after pacer Stuart Broad signed up with Hobart Hurricanes earlier this month.

The Perth Scorchers having won the league a couple of times in 2013-14 and 2014-15 and ending the tournament as second best the two following seasons is the most successful team in the tournament.

On signing up with the team Bell said, “The Scorchers have been a force in every season of the Big Bash,”

“I’m really excited about joining up with the team in December and making The Furnace my home ground.”

Though Bell hasn’t been considered for national selection at the moment. He did his part with the bat in the NatWest T20 Blast where he accumulated 489 runs at an average of 40.75 and a strike-rate of 130.74 and was the fifth-highest run-getter in the season. In the Scorchers team, Bell has England left-arm pacer David Willey for company at the Scorchers. The upcoming will be the second BBL season for Willey but considering international commitments he will most likely be available only for the first half of the season.

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On being signed by the Hurricanes, Broad had said, “It has been really good to have Hurricanes team-mate Dan Christian playing with me at Notts who has been really positive about the Hobart Hurricanes and also the city of Hobart which I’m looking forward to embracing,”

“I’m going to look at scheduling, whether it’s home or abroad, to try to play some white-ball cricket and there might be a decent opportunity after Christmas this year because there’s not a lot of Test cricket then until I think July. The only way I’ll get back is by playing white-ball cricket and that’s the only way my skills will improve, too.”

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