It’s finally here.
David Warner has returned to the Big Bash League after nine years, representing the Sydney Thunder in Friday evening’s match against the Perth Scorchers at Sydney Showground.
In his incredibly brief three-game BBL career, two of which have been Sydney derbies, Warner has ridden the highs and lows of T20.
He belted an unbeaten 102 off 50 balls against a Melbourne Stars attack, including the late Shane Warne, in the competition’s second ever game in 2011.
The next season he crossed to the Sydney Sixers and made a duck in his lone game before going back to the Thunder and scoring a half-century in 2013.
In the nine years since, Warner has not made a Big Bash appearance.
Watch BBL12. Every game live and ad-break free during play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
MATCH CENTRE: Thunder vs Scorchers teams, scorecard, videos, updates
“It’s incredibly exciting to have a player of David Warner’s calibre return to Thunder, and, indeed the Big Bash League,” Head of Thunder Andrew Gilchrist said in a statement.
“He’s a great player, a great person, and a great family man. Thunder Nation can’t wait to see him light up the Sydney Showground Stadium, Manuka Oval and everywhere else we play during our run home.”
The Scorchers are currently top of the BBL ladder with seven wins in nine games, and remain heavy favourites to lift the trophy next month.
“We’re fourth at the moment, so the guys have been playing well. We’ve had some injuries and if I can contribute in any way, it’d be awesome,” Warner told reporters on Thursday.
“It’s going to be a tough game, obviously the Scorchers are a well-equipped team, they’ve had some great success with four titles.”
The first ball at Sydney Showground is scheduled for 6.30pm AEDT.
FOLLOW THE ACTION IN OUR LIVE BLOG BELOW. CAN’T SEE IT? CLICK HERE.
Sydney Thunder squad
Ben Cutting, Joel Davies, Oliver Davies, Brendan Doggett, Matthew Gilkes, Chris Green (c), Baxter Holt, Blake Nikitaras, Nathan McAndrew, Ross Pawson, Usman Qadir, Alex Ross, Daniel Sams, David Warner, Sam Whiteman
Perth Scorchers squad
Ashton Turner (C), Ashton Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Jason Behrendorff, Cooper Connolly, Stephen Eskinazi, David Payne, Aaron Hardie, Peter Hatzoglou, Nick Hobson, Josh Inglis, Matt Kelly, Lance Morris, Andrew Tye