Legendary Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin is set to play for Sydney Thunder in the upcoming edition of the Big Bash League (BBL). The official announcement from the franchise is expected later this week as Ashwin will take the field alongside David Warner, who is the captain of the Thunder.
According to a report in Fox Sports, Ashwin, who retired from international cricket in December 2024 and from the Indian Premier League (IPL) last week, is 'understood to have committed to Sydney Thunder'. However, he will not be available for the franchise for the entire season as he is also committed to featuring in the upcoming ILT20 edition.
Coming back to Ashwin joining Sydney Thunder, he might end up playing alongside Pakistan all-rounder Shadab Khan, who was signed by the franchise earlier this year. Things are heated up between the two countries at the moment as even the Indian team refused to shake hands during the ongoing Asia Cup clashes. It remains to be seen if Ashwin will also keep his distance from Shadab when he joins him in the dressing room.
Ashwin has entered his name in the first-ever auction of ILT20 that is set to take place on October 1 and has listed his name in the highest base price bracket. If picked in the auction, the off-spinner will play the entire ILT20 season, which is scheduled to end on January 4, and then will travel to Australia to honour his BBL commitments for Sydney Thunder. Notably, the league stage of the BBL 2025-26 will run until January 18 and then the playoffs, including the final, will take place from January 20 to 25.
4 Teams showed interest in Ashwin
Earlier, it was reported that three more teams apart from the Sydney Thunder had shown their interest in signing Ashwin for the upcoming season. Sydney Sixers, Hobart Hurricanes and Adelaide Strikers were interested to secure the services of the 39-year-old but the Thunder have eventually managed to snap him up. All the entire details of his contract is expected to be revealed soon by the Sydney Thunder in the coming days.
Current Squad of Sydney Thunder for BBL 2025-26: Tom Andrews, Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Sam Billings (Eng), Ollie Davies, Lockie Ferguson (NZ), Matthew Gilkes, Chris Green, Ryan Hadley, Shadab Khan (Pak), Sam Konstas, Nathan McAndrew, Blake Nikitaras, Daniel Sams, Tanveer Sangha, David Warner
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