Thunder re-sign duo for BBL|05

Sydney Thunder have locked in Gurinder Sandhu and Usman Khawaja for the next two KFC T20 Big Bash League seasons.

The pair, who are both currently touring India with the Australia A squad, will now play with the club until the end of BBL|06.

Paceman Sandhu, who employed his off-spin to bowl Australia A to a 10-wicket win against India A on Saturday, said he believed the club would be stronger in BBL|05.

“I think we can improve on last year, we doubled the wins on the previous year and if we double last year’s again that’ll get us to four wins and hopefully we can sneak into the semis,” Sandhu said.

“I think the players we’ve signed will fit into our squad really well.  Paddy (Upton), Mike (Hussey) and Nick (Cummins) are going after the guys with good character who are also great players, so hopefully it’s a good year for the Thunder.”

Khawaja, who captained Australia A in their two four-day matches against India A, said he was eagerly anticipating his return to the BBL after sustaining a knee injury in the lead up to BBL|04.

“I love being part of Sydney Thunder, I’ve been there since the start,” the 28-year-old batsman said.

“I grew up in Western Sydney and my family still live there so it’s nice to be able to come back and play for Thunder in front of my family and friends.”

Khawaja said he was expecting a big year for the Thunder.

“I’m really excited and looking forward to the future, I think we’re going to have a good couple of years ahead of us,” he said.

“I think we have a really good chance of doing well over the next two seasons. We just have to do the little things right and hopefully not lose as many players to injury as we did last year.”

Sandhu and Khawaja sit equal second for matches played for the Thunder, with 17 appearances apiece, and are in line to overtake games record holder Dirk Nannes (20) this season.

In June, the Thunder revealed Australian cricket great Mike Hussey would lead the team for one final season, while Fawad Ahmed, Ben Rohrer and Shane Watson are new additions to the Thunder’s BBL|05 list.

The Thunder will kick off their BBL|05 campaign against local rival Sydney Sixers at Spotless Stadium - their new permanent home in Sydney’s west - on December 17.

Sydney Thunder BBL|05 contracted players: Fawad Ahmed, Aiden Blizzard, Pat Cummins, Jake Doran, Chris Hartley, Michael Hussey, Jacques Kallis, Usman Khawaja, Andrew McDonald, Ben Rohrer, Gurinder Sandhu, Shane Watson

Sydney Thunder WBBL|01 contracted players: Alex Blackwell, Rene Farrell

Click above to learn more about how to stream the Ashes and more cricket