Mitchell Santner agrees Worcestershire return for T20 Blast

A third season at New Road beckons for the New Zealand allrounder, following confirmation Michael Bracewell will also make up one of the overseas slots

Worcestershire have secured the return of Mitchell Santner as their second overseas player for the T20 Blast.

The New Zealand allrounder joins countryman Michael Bracewell for the 2023 campaign.

Santner has previously spent two seasons at New Road, in 2016 and 2017, though the first of those was curtailed by a broken finger suffered on debut.

In 14 matches for the Rapids, the 30-year-old has 15 wickets and 240 runs. He was due to represent Derbyshire in 2019 but pulled out of the spell after suffering a serious knee injury

A central pillar of the Black Caps' white-ball teams, Santner has also enjoyed stints in the IPL with Chennai Super Kings and the CPL at Barbados Tridents (now Royals).

^{Santner previously played 14 matches for the Rapids across two spells in 2016 and 2017 (Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)}

He will provide further cover following the departure of Moeen Ali, who has returned to Warwickshire ahead of next season.

"It's great to be coming back to Worcestershire for a third season and to link up with some old friends and faces in the dressing room, as well as some new ones," said Santner, a left-arm spinner and left-handed middle-order batter.

"I kept a keen interest in how the Rapids did after I left, and it was awesome for the club to win the Blast in 2018 and come so close again the year after.

"They had reached a few quarter-finals before that, and to make that breakthrough was brilliant. Hopefully, I can help them get those successful times back.

"A few New Zealanders have played for Worcestershire since I left, like Martin Guptill and Ish Sodhi, and it will be great to have Michael Bracewell as a team-mate, someone who has already made his mark in international cricket and will be an asset next summer."

^{Michael Bracewell was announced as Worcestershire's first Blast overseas signing last month (Kerry Marshall/Getty Images)}

Head coach Alan Richardson will hope the Kiwi pair can inspire another run to the latter stages of the Blast. Winners in 2018 and runners-up the following season, they propped up the North Group in 2022 and were bottom of the Central Group in 2020.

Steering group chair Paul Pridgeon added: "Mitchell has shown his ability at international level and knows the club, and some of the players, from his previous spell. He ticks a lot of boxes.

"He gives us another option in the spin department, a facet of the game which has proved, so key in T20 cricket, and can also strike a powerful ball with the bat.

"Mitchell said how keen he was to return to New Road for another spell, and it did not take long to get everything sorted.

"We believe signing him and Michael Bracewell will make us a stronger T20 side and back up our determination to dramatically improve on last season's performances in the T20."

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• Michael Bracewell to join Worcestershire for T20 Blast