Photo Credit: Sydney Sixers
The Sydney Sixers have secured cricket’s most sought-after signature, locking in Australian superstar and club legend, Steve Smith, for the next three seasons.
A two-time Big Bash champion, member of the 2012 Champions League title-winning side and one of the game’s all-time greats, Smith is set to remain a Sixer until at least the end of the KFC BBL|16 season, the club announced today.
Sixers members and fans will have the opportunity to see the superstar in action after the conclusion of the Australian Test summer, with Smith expected to be available for the Sixers’ run home in a crucial must-win period of the tournament.
Two mouth-watering home clashes potentially await the star, with the Sixers set to face ferocious rivals, the Perth Scorchers and Sydney Thunder, at the SCG on January 11 and 17 respectively, in what is set to be the biggest contests of the summer.
A member of the Sixers since inception, Smith has been part of the fabric of the club since its earliest days, making his Big Bash debut in the league’s inaugural season thirteen years ago.
The summer ahead will mark the star’s third consecutive season in pink, following his explosive return to the Big Bash in BBL|12 where he notched back-to-back centuries and finishing the summer as one of the league’s top run-scorers.
Making two appearances for the club last summer, Sixers fans were treated to the best of Steve Smith in the side’s opening match against the Melbourne Renegades, producing a player of the match performance in front of home fans at the SCG.
Putting his white-ball credentials on show in the United States last month, the superstar led the Cricket NSW-aligned Washington Freedom to glory in Major League Cricket, adding to an already overflowing silverware cabinet.
Sydney Sixers General Manager, Rachael Haynes said securing Smith for the next three years was an incredible boost for the club.
“It’s fantastic news to have Steve commit to the club for the next three years. He’s one of the best players in the world and we know just how excited our members and fans will be to see him in pink in the coming seasons.
“Steve is a proven performer in this format and he’s in outstanding white-ball form at the moment, leading Washington Freedom to their first title in Major League Cricket last month.
“Steve is a Sixer through and through and has been part of the club since the very beginning. It’s a sign of significant commitment on his part to sign on with the club for the next three years and we couldn’t be happier to have him on board long-term.”
The Sydney Sixers are an Australian professional Twenty20 cricket team competing in the Big Bash League (BBL). Based at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the Sixers, along with the Sydney Thunder, succeeded the New South Wales Blues from the now-defunct KFC Twenty20 Big Bash.
