In their first signing since the BBL|14 Final, the Hobart Hurricanes have begun their title defence with a huge free agent signing.
Jake Weatherald, an attacking left-handed top-order batter, has signed with the ‘Cane Train for two seasons.
He is delighted to be joining the Hurricanes this summer.
“This is going to be biblical, so excited to be a part of this group!” stated Weatherald.
Joining the Hurricanes from the Adelaide Strikers, Weatherald debuted in BBL|06 for the South Australian side, and in his 93 BBL matches has scored 2176 runs at an average of 25.6 and strike rate of 131.24, with a top score of 115.
Weatherald will be familiar to all Tasmanian cricket fans.
He recently won the Ricky Ponting Medal for the best player in domestic cricket for the Tasmanian Tigers last season and has a terrific record at Ninja Stadium for the Tigers and whenever he has played for the Strikers.
Last season, he only featured in five matches for the Strikers, and he will be looking to play more matches for the Hurricanes this summer.
With the ability to play across anywhere across the top four, Weatherald joins a stacked Hobart Hurricanes batting line-up, which already features Mitchell Owen, Ben McDermott, Beau Webster, Matt Wade, Nikhil Chaudhary and Mac Wright.
Cricket Tasmania High Performance General Manager, Salliann Beams, discussed the importance of top-order batting depth following the title last summer.
"Adding depth to our batting order was a priority for us this off-season.
"We are aiming for as much continuity as possible for our squad over the coming seasons, and to have a top-order batsman who is destructive and as talented as Jake will be a massive bonus for our team.
"After seeing how well he has played at Ninja Stadium, for us in domestic cricket and against us in the Big Bash, it was a no-brainer,” said Beams.
Weatherald joins Iain Carlisle, Nikhil Chaudhary, Nathan Ellis, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Mitch Owen, Matt Wade, Beau Webster, and Mac Wright under contract ahead of BBL|15, with further signings and re-signings to be announced soon.
Details on Hobart Hurricanes memberships will be communicated to Hurricanes fans in the coming months.