David Warner bound to Big Bash League’s Sydney Thunder in event of clash with ILT20

David Warner was last month unveiled as a new signing for the Dubai Capitals in the ILT20 – which begins on January 19, the same day the BBL finals begin.

Sydney Thunder says it expects David Warner to play in the Big Bash League finals should the side qualify, despite a clash with the IPL-backed ILT20 competition where he is also committed.

Warner, 36, last year signed a two-season contract to return to the Thunder, having not played at all in the BBL for the best part of a decade.

The veteran left-hander made a modest 99 runs across six matches last campaign, in which the Thunder fell to Brisbane Heat in a rain-marred elimination final.

Warner declared earlier this year that pending selection, he would retire from Test cricket following the SCG Test against Pakistan in early January.

That would allow him to play up to four regular-season matches at the back end of the BBL, as well as any finals the Thunder make.

However, Warner was last month unveiled as a new signing for the Dubai Capitals in the ILT20, which begins on January 19; the same day the BBL finals begin.

The BBL’s decider is on January 24, potentially delaying Warner’s arrival in the lucrative UAE competition. Should the Thunder miss the finals, Warner would be free to head to the other league.

David Warner is expected to turn out for the duration of the Sydney Thunder’s BBL campaign. Picture: Mark Evans – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images

Aussie white-ball mainstays Adam Zampa and Marcus Stoinis both had stints in the inaugural ILT20 last season, but only once their Melbourne Stars side was eliminated from the BBL.

Thunder chief Andrew Gilchrist said that Warner was bound to the club until the end of the season.

“He’s already flagged that he wants to finish after the Sydney Test. And then yeah, he’s available for us after that,” Gilchrist said.

“So I understand he’s agreed to terms with the team from Dubai, the IlT20. But we expect him to turn up with Sydney Thunder and come and play. And he performed really well for us last year.

“He’s fully contracted to us. I don’t foresee him leaving early to go and play in that.”

Fellow Australians Andrew Tye and Daniel Sams were also on the list of ILT20 squads released last month, despite being tied to the Perth Scorchers and Thunder respectively.

The BBL draft last week was compromised by the fact that most leading overseas players are unable to play the whole tournament due to commitments either in the SA20 or ILT20 competitions, both of which overlap in part with the BBL. International fixtures also affect player availability.

David Warner hopes to end his Test career on his terms, at the SCG in January. Picture: Visionhaus/Getty Images

“It makes it interesting,” Gilchrist said.

“You look at the leagues side-by-side, obviously availability comes into whether you’re going to pick up a certain player based on them only playing up until a certain period of time, whether they go to the South African league or the ILT20. So you know, it’s interesting, there’s obviously different ways to attack it. And every team’s got different salary cap requirements and the like.”

Warner is in South Africa as part of Australia’s build-up to next month’s one-day World Cup. The three-time Allan Border Medallist has indicated that he wants to finish his international career at next year’s Twenty20 World Cup in the West Indies and US.

Selectors have not guaranteed that Warner will play the three-match Pakistan Test series after he performed only middlingly during the 2-2 drawn Ashes.

Originally published as David Warner bound to Big Bash League’s Sydney Thunder in event of clash with ILT20