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Khawaja joins UK county circuit

Australia batsman to play in England's T20 competition alongside Test teammate Shaun Marsh for Welsh county

Australia batsman Usman Khawaja has signed with Welsh county cricket side Glamorgan for the UK's domestic T20 competition.

The move requires Cricket Australia to formally issue a No Objection Certificate before Khawaja can join fellow countryman Shaun Marsh in Cardiff. He will be available for all 14 group matches in the competition that begins in July.

"I'm delighted to have signed for Glamorgan for their Vitality Blast campaign and look forward to the challenge of helping them build on the success they achieved in last year's competition," Khawaja told the club's official website.

"From my point of view, it would be great to be able to take them a step further and bring silverware back to Wales."

Left-hander Khawaja, 31, has previously represented Derbyshire and Lancashire and played 33 Tests, 18 one-day internationals and nine T20 internationals since making his Australia debut in 2011.

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Khawaja helped lead the Sydey Thunder to the Big Bash championship in BBL|05. He played three matches for the Thunder around Test commitments last summer, scoring two fifties and a top-score of 85.

Like Marsh, he played on the Qantas Tour of South Africa and featured in the Cape Town Test last month which saw Australia become embroiled in a ball-tampering scandal.

Neither Khawaja nor Marsh played any part in the scandal which saw captain Steve Smith, vice-captain David Warner and batsman Cameron Bancroft subsequently banned from international and Australian domestic cricket.

Australia is due to play five ODIs and a T20 in England in June, before heading to Zimbabwe for a T20 tri-series also featuring Pakistan in July. With Smith and Warner absent, Khawaja could force his way into the national limited-overs side, with the squad for that tour to be named early in May.

The left-hander is currently honeymooning in the Maldives following his wedding to partner Rachel McLellan, and is not featuring in this year's IPL.


Glamorgan director of cricket Hugh Morris said: "Usman is a world-class player who has played at the highest level for a number of years and has experience in playing T20 cricket around the world.

"Despite his classical style he is a very destructive batsman who can dominate any bowling attack and I’m sure is someone our supporters will look forward to watching this year.

"With his addition to our batting line-up, which already includes Colin Ingram and Shaun Marsh, as well our young Glamorgan players, we have a batting line-up capable of continuing our success in the competition and thrill crowds in Wales."

Counties are allowed to field two overseas players in their XI for T20 matches.