Cameron Bancroft signs for Somerset for County Championship season

Cameron Bancroft signs for Somerset as he joins Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne in the County Championship…with Aussie batter in line for an Ashes recall after an outstanding domestic season 

  • Cameron Bancroft will play County Championship for Somerset
  • The 30-year-old enjoyed an outstanding Sheffield Season for Western Australia
  • Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne both will play County Cricket this season 

Cameron Bancroft will play for Somerset at the start of the County Championship season as leading Australians continue to book in for pre-Ashes practice.

Bancroft, 30, is not currently in Australia’s Test team but is in line for a recall following an outstanding Sheffield Shield season for Western Australia in which he struck four hundreds, twice as many as any rival, amongst 945 runs – a tally that placed him 289 ahead of the field.

Bancroft previously signed for Somerset in 2018 but didn’t make it onto the field as the deal was scuppered by the nine-month ban he served for his part in Australia’s ball-tampering scandal, and joined Durham once it had expired.

Fellow top-order player Usman Khawaja is also keen on a stint to warm up for six Tests in eight weeks here this summer – the World Championship final against India in early June precedes the Ashes – but rejected the opportunity to get game time with Yorkshire next month as he is not making himself available until May.

Off-spinner Todd Murphy, who took 14 wickets in his debut series in India recently, has been in discussions with Durham, although the chances of that move happening have receded. 

Cameron Bancroft has agreed to join Somerset for the upcoming County Cricket season

The Australian made 945 runs in the Sheffield Shield this season, with four centuries

While Cricket Australia are happy for their batters to gain exposure, they have taken a more cautious approach with regards to putting miles in the legs of their bowling attack.

Three of Australia’s top six during that 2-1 defeat on the subcontinent in Steve Smith (Sussex), Marnus Labuschagne (Glamorgan) and Peter Handscomb (Leicestershire) have already committed to periods of acclimatising to English conditions ahead of an attempt to win a first away Ashes in 22 years.

And a group of peripheral players have made sure they will be on hand and match-ready: Marcus Harris is with Gloucestershire, Michael Neser returns to Glamorgan, all-rounders Sean Abbott and Will Sutherland are at Surrey and Essex respectively while Sam Whiteman is to feature for Northamptonshire.

Australians have played here domestically for five decades but this year’s influx has sparked a debate on the suitability of the first-class counties providing England’s opponents with a pre-series advantage.

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