Cameron Boyce is considering the possibility of forming a powerful partnership with Rashid Khan this summer after signing a two-year contract to join the Adelaide Strikers.
While the Strikers are expected to use their first pick in the BBL’s first foreign player draft to trap the Afghan player, Boyce will be the favorite to fill the role held by veteran Fawad Ahmed last summer.
Fawad, 40, who took up coaching as a rotational consultant with the Australian side during their tour of Pakistan earlier this year, is out of contract and not expected to return to the Strikers.
Boyce, who has 97 career T20 wickets with a saving of 7.55 and a strike rate of 18.80, said he had previously been in contact with Rashid ahead of a hoped-for December affair.
For the 33-year-old, a new contract with the Strikers is something of a homecoming after his first foray into Big Bash cricket a decade ago.
Pigeonhole by Queensland at the time as a first-class bowler, Boyce remembers sitting in the stands at Gabba watching Heat games in BBL | 01 and telling his twin brother Chris “I feel like I’m good enough to play this”.
Unable to break into a team, Adelaide under then-head coach Darren Berry threw Boyce a lifeline.
“I just wanted a chance, so when Adelaide reached out that second year, I got that chance and things kind of took off from there,” Boyce said. cricket.com.au.
“So looking back now and thinking it was 10 years ago is obviously pretty crazy.
“But to be able to go back to the Strikers, they were the first team to sign me and show that little bit of confidence in me, I’m really excited to be able to come down and pay that back.”
Boyce is nothing if not loyal. He suffered a health crisis at the end of 2020 which kept him out of the Melbourne Renegades for the duration of BBL | 10 and has been desperate to return to the club to repay their support during this time.
His 10 wickets in four games at the end of BBL | 11 settled his debt, even though Boyce had been told he would not be re-contracted by wine merchant ‘Gades until a promised cleanup that has so far failed to materialize.
His time with the Renegades ended with a five-wicket run, including a stunning four-for-four double hat-trick in a tight loss and, knowing it would be his last game, always said he would give just for a team victory.
So when the Strikers inquired for the BBL | 12, Boyce was immediately keen to return to the club that gave him his first chance to play T20 cricket in BBL | 02 in the summer of 2012-13.
“When I heard Adelaide was interested – and there were a few other teams who were also showing interest – but as soon as I heard Adelaide was interested I immediately felt very keen to come back there. -down,” Boyce said.
“I was talking to Rashid a few nights ago actually and yeah he was pretty excited too.”
Despite the “disappointing” ending to his stint with the Renegades, Boyce holds no grudges against the club, but is considering a return to Marvel Stadium for the Strikers’ final regular season game.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed (to be cut by the Renegades), but I’ve also been around long enough to understand that it is sometimes like that,” Boyce said.
“It’s not the first time this has happened to me in my career in terms of having to leave a team or having to leave a state, so even though I was disappointed, I can’t do big -something about this decision once made. .
“I think it’s exciting and I’m looking forward to these kinds of games – we play the Renegades at Marvel and I love playing at Marvel, obviously winning a title there was fantastic, but it’s just going to be another game .”
Adelaide Strikers BBL Team | 12 (so far): Wes Agar, Cameron Boyce, Alex Carey, Harry Conway, Ryan Gibson, Henry Hunt, Thomas Kelly, Harry Nielsen, Matthew Renshaw, Matt Short, Jake Weatherald.
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