The World Cup may be over, but many of the stars who have lit up the tournament are on their way to county cricket this summer.
Five members of the official team of the tournament that was announced today have already signed up - Kumar Sangakkara for Surrey, Martin Guptill with Derbyshire, Corey Anderson to Somerset, Glenn Maxwell to Yorkshire, and Brendan Taylor, who was named as 12th man, for Nottinghamshire.
They will be joined by plenty of other World Cup stars, with the concentration highest at the height of the summer when the NatWest T20 Blast competition is nearing its climax.
Grant Elliott, who played that stunning innings in New Zealand’s semi-final victory over South Africa, is on his way to Leicestershire Foxes.
So pumped to be heading back to @Yorkshireccc and bringing my great mate @Gmaxi_32 with me. Amazing place, amazing people...#Cantwait
— Aaron Finch (@AaronFinch5) January 28, 2015
Somerset fans can relish the prospect of Chris Gayle gracing Taunton, as well as Anderson, and Yorkshire Vikings have made a double Australian swoop with Aaron Finch returning to Headingley, where New Zealander Kane Williamson and Pakistan's Younus Khan will also play at some point this season, to link up with Maxwell.
Two of Sangakkara’s Sri Lanka World Cup team-mates are heading to England, with Tillakaratne Dilshan due to join Derbyshire Falcons and Mahela Jayawardene on board for Sussex Sharks in time for their Blast opener at Kent Spitfires in mid-May.
Northants Steelbacks are relishing the prospect of welcoming Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi for the start of their Blast campaign at Durham Jets, and another former international captain, Darren Sammy of West Indies, will play for Notts Outlaws.
That’s without mentioning the numerous other overseas signings with an impressive pedigree who were not involved in the World Cup.
Saeed Ajmal is due to return to Worcestershire, Shaun Tait will join Jesse Ryder at Essex, Lancashire have signed Peter Siddle,Adam Voges will replace Chris Rogers as Middlesex captain, and Gloucestershire have signed the only two players to score a century in this winter’s Big Bash League in Australia – Michael Klinger and Peter Handscomb.
With all England players available for the fourth round of Blast matches on Friday 5 June – including the Roses clash at Headingley and another grudge match between Surrey and Essex Eagles at the Kia Oval – the tournament is set to go to another level in 2015.
Many counties are already reporting encouraging ticket sales, with Somerset stunned by The Gayle Effect in the west country – their website and ticketing systems were briefly over-run and in less than a week they have sold enough tickets to fill their County Ground at Taunton.
And this is more than a week before the county season even starts, with the Blast to be officially launched at Edgbaston on April 16.
