Three seasons after his first go at captaincy in the BBL, Chris Lynn takes up the mantle again. His team, the Brisbane Heat, made the announcement on Monday ahead of their season opener against the defending champions Adelaide Strikers and the opening batsman welcomed the extra responsibility on his big-hitting shoulders.
Lynn had led the Heat in the 2015-16 edition of the Big Bash when he finished Player of the Tournament but the team ended up bottom of the table. He has also been at the helm of Queensland’s campaign in the JLT one-day cup earlier this season, when they made it to the semi-finals.
“I really enjoyed the experience I had as Heat captain previously and likewise with Queensland. Leadership is something I have enjoyed since I was a young bloke starting out and I’m confident I am ready to handle it in the BBL.
“We have got a settled squad with talent to burn and I can’t wait to get into the season and have a go.”
Lynn is the top run-getter for the Heat with a tally of 1560 and the only man with more than 100 sixes in the BBL. The 28-year old is also a sought-after commodity in T20 teams around the world having most recently played for Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, Lahore Qalandars in the PSL and Trinbago Knight Riders in the CPL.
“Having Lynny as captain is right on the money,” Brendon McCullum, who led Heat in 2017, said. “He’s a senior player with lots of expertise and has been part of winning teams and successful clubs all over the world.
“I have enjoyed being able to tap into his thinking when I was captain and I know he is more than ready as skipper to enable us to play exciting, fearless cricket again this summer.”
Head coach Daniel Vettori said the appointment had been in the works for a while. “The timeline is pretty much as we mapped out when we all came together a few years back to do some planning around succession and future recruiting.”
The Heat will play an intra-squad game on Wednesday in the Gold Coast as practice leading up to the new season of the BBL which starts on December 19.
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