Young English star poised to sign Big Bash deal

He once hit six sixes in an over and slammed a hundred off just 25 balls and now young Englishman Will Jacks is poised to head to Australia.

Jacks, 21, is close to signing a deal with the Hobart Hurricanes in the KFC BBL this summer, which would see him follow in the footsteps of countryman Jofra Archer, who made a Big Bash splash at the Canes long before launching into an international career with England.

Having already lured Peter Handscomb from the Melbourne Stars, the Hurricanes are also hoping to sign the world's top-ranked T20 batter, Dawid Malan, as part of an expected English invasion in the BBL this season.

The UK's Evening Standard has reported that Jacks is set to cover for Malan early in the Big Bash given the left-hander is set to be part of England's squad for their proposed limited-overs tour of South Africa, which is expected to run from mid-November to early December.

The tour has not yet been confirmed – talks are reported to be at "an advanced stage" – and if it goes ahead, several English stars would likely miss the early rounds of the BBL given they'll be required to complete a mandatory two-week quarantine period upon their arrival in Australia.

Key England white-ball players Jonny Bairstow (Melbourne Stars) and Jason Roy (Perth Scorchers) have already been linked with moves to the Big Bash this season, while the likes of Alex Hales (Sydney Thunder), Liam Livingstone (Scorchers) and Phil Salt (Adelaide Strikers) have also been in talks about returning.

The Hurricanes are yet to officially lock in any of their international signings for this summer, meaning Jacks could remain with the club even after Malan arrives.

There's also an outside chance that he could be part of the squad to tour South Africa.

Jacks made headlines in March last year when he blasted a century from just 25 deliveries in a 10-over practice match in Dubai - an innings that included six successive sixes off the one over - which is believed to be the fastest century between two professional teams.

And the right-handed batter is in red hot form having been named player of the tournament in England's recent T20 Blast competition, where he also showed his wares as an off-spin bowler, taking 13 wickets at an impressive economy rate of just 6.46.

But it's predominantly with the bat that Jacks has made his name. A powerful top-order player, he made his first hundred for county side Surrey at the age of 19, a year after he'd smashed a host of schoolboy records when he scored an extraordinary 279 from just 138 balls, including 19 sixes and 29 fours, in a 50-over game for St George's College.

He joined Roy and South African Hashim Amla in a dangerous Surrey top-order in the T20 Blast this year, scoring 309 runs from 13 games at a strike rate of 150.

Jacks may be a relatively unknown name in Australia right now, but the Big Bash has an impressive history of providing a platform for uncapped English players to thrive. None more so than Archer, whose move to the Hurricanes in 2017 was initially criticised given Australian audiences knew little about him. But having dominated the competition for two years, he's since gone on to shine for England in their World Cup win and the Ashes last year.

Livingstone (who played two T20s for England in 2017), Brisbane Heat opener Tom Banton and Sydney Sixers allrounder Tom Curran have also lit up the BBL despite not being well established names at international level at the time.

Banton and Curran have already signed on to return to the BBL this season.

Uncertainty over travel restrictions and the international schedule has made attracting overseas talent more complicated than usual for BBL clubs this year, but England's white-ball stars are among the few internationals who will be available and they've already been given the green light by their skipper, Eoin Morgan, to target a stint in the Big Bash ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.