Johan Botha comes out of retirement as Hobart Hurricanes confirm replacement trio

Charlie Wakim and Caleb Jewell are also signed up, with Matthew Wade, Tim Paine and Mitch Owen all unavailable

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Hobart Hurricanes have confirmed three replacement players ahead of the Big Bash League, including Johan Botha who has come out of retirement for the competition.

Twenty-two months on from calling time on his career, the South African allrounder is back.

Botha entered retirement after Hurricanes were beaten by Sydney Sixers in January 2019, following a fledgeling senior career.

He played five Tests, 78 one-day internationals and 40 T20s for South Africa.

As an Australian resident, he can be registered as a local player for the BBL and joins as a replacement.

"I figured I’m as fit as I’ve ever been, and I feel I can still make a contribution to the team," Botha said.

"I’ve missed playing but I didn’t really want to put it out there and say ‘can you pick me’ in case it didn’t work out, so we kept it quiet from when we first chatted about it at the Shield hub in Adelaide, and it slowly built up from there."

Matthew Wade and Tim Paine will be unavailable for the start of the competition due to their involvement for Australia in the India Test series, permitting Hurricanes to enlist a handful of replacements.

Alongside Botha, Charlie Wakim has also been signed up while Caleb Jewell comes in with Mitch Owen recovering from a stress fracture.

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