Martin Guptill joins Melbourne Renegades for BBL12

The New Zealand international will be available for 10 group matches and the finals as a replacement for Liam Livingstone

Melbourne Renegades have signed Martin Guptill for the 2022/23 Big Bash.

The New Zealand international will be available for 10 group matches and the finals (should the Renegades qualify) as a replacement for Liam Livingstone, who withdrew from the tournament earlier in November. Andre Russell will be available for four matches prior to Guptill's arrival.

Guptill, a top-order batter, recently opted to cancel his central contract with New Zealand Cricket in order to pursue other opportunities.

The 36-year-old has made 122 T20I appearances for the Black Caps, scoring 3,531 runs (two centuries, 20 half-centuries) at a strike rate of 135.70 while across his entire career, he has chalked up over 8,500 T20 runs in 303 matches.

In demand in T20 leagues around the globe, Guptill has featured in the IPL, CPL, PSL and T20 Blast as well as making one appearances for Sydney Thunder during the 2012/13 season.

^{Guptill is an overseas replacement for Liam Livingstone, sharing the job with veteran allrounder Andre Russell [Cameron Spencer/Getty Images]}

Guptill joins a Renegades side desperate for a positive season after collecting the wooden spoon in each of the past three editions, and the New Zealander has success in his sights.

"I'm excited to be joining the Renegades and am looking forward to being part of the Big Bash this season," Guptill said.

"This is a new challenge for me and it will be nice to call Melbourne home for the summer. I'll be trying to make as many runs as I can to help drive the Renegades back up the ladder and push for team success.

"I've crossed paths with a few of the guys over the years on the international circuit and know this will be a great team environment to be part of.

"I can't wait to join up with the team after Christmas and play in front of plenty of Renegades fans at Marvel Stadium and in Geelong."

General manager, James Rosengarten, added: "Martin's record over a long period of time in the shortest form of the game for New Zealand and in domestic competitions around the world speaks for itself.

"We know Martin will add a wealth of experience and knowledge to our playing group and look forward to seeing what he can produce in red.

"Signing Martin and Andre over the past month has been a great outcome for our club. With Andre playing the first four matches and Martin joining us from there, we now have a world-class player available for the duration of the tournament which will help give us every chance of success in BBL12."

Related Topics

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• New Zealand batter Martin Guptill released from central contract