Big Bash League 2022-23: Faf Du Plessis joins Perth Scorchers as Laurie Evans's replacement

South African maestro Faf du Plessis joined Perth Scorchers as a last-minute replacement for English batter Laurie Evans. Laurie was found positive after his anti-doping test earlier this season. Faf, who was quite successful as the RCB leader in the Indian Premier League last season, will be looking to revive his Big Bash career with the Perth franchise in the 2022-23 season.

Although Faf was marked as one of the 12 marquee players this season, he was ignored in August's inaugural overseas player draft. Along with the former South African captain, West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell and New Zealand batter Martin Guptill will also be joining the Australian T20 carnival.

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Faf du Plessis scored 1299 T20 runs in 2022 at an average of 31.51 playing franchise cricket around the world. He had a great IPL with the Royal Challengers Bangalore by scoring 468 runs at 31.20. In fact, he bettered himself in the Caribbean Premier League with 332 at 41.50 for St. Lucia.

The 38-year-old batter will be joining the Joburg Super Kings in South Africa's new domestic T20 league after finishing his stint with the Perth team. He will be available for all of the first seven matches for the Scorchers.

After the departure of the African batter, the current BBL champions will be able to sign another replacement for him, if they want.

"The first thing that jumps to mind is that Perth are four-time champions, which is very impressive. Any player who plays around the world wants to win competitions, so it's a great franchise to be part of," du Plessis told in an interview with Cricket.com.au.

"Watching the (T20) World Cup, the bounce looked very, very steep. The wickets in South Africa and Australia are quite similar with more pace and bounce than spin, so it is something I've grown up with and I'm looking forward to playing in Perth this summer," he added.

"His record in T20 cricket speaks for itself. He can play in all conditions, bat anywhere in the top six, and has proven himself at the highest level for more than a decade."

Kade Harvey, WA Cricket General Manager High Performance

Perth Scorchers squad for the BLL 2022-23 season

Ashton Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Jason Behrendorff, Cooper Connolly, Faf du Plessis (South Africa), Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Peter Hatzoglou, Nick Hobson, Josh Inglis, Matt Kelly, Mitch Marsh, Tymal Mills (England), Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, Phil Salt (England), Ashton Turner (c), Andrew Tye