BBL: Melbourne Renegades sign Howell, Couch, Hatzoglou
Dec 07, 2020
Melbourne [Australia], December 7 : Melbourne Renegades have added English all-rounder Benny Howell and domestic talents Brody Couch and Peter Hatzoglou to their squad ahead of the upcoming Big Bash League (BBL) season.
Howell comes into the squad as an Overseas Replacement Player for Mohammad Nabi, who will miss the opening two matches of the tournament as he completes his quarantine period while Couch and Hatzoglou come in as local replacement players for Marcus Harris and Will Sutherland respectively.
Harris and Sutherland will miss the start of the tournament with Australia A commitments.
Howell is a middle-order batsman and pace bowler with 121 T20 matches to his name. Last year he hit 64 runs off 37 balls against Australia A.
"Benny's got a great T20 record with Gloucestershire and I got to know him well in my time over there. He's got all the tricks and is someone who can finish off an innings really well with the bat and he has a lot of variations with the ball," Renegades coach Michael Klinger said in a statement.
"We've looked to strengthen the end of our batting innings with Dan Christian heading to the Sixers - so with Benny, Imad Wasim, Will Sutherland and Jack Prestwidge we've got some strong options to help close out our batting innings," he added.
Couch is an emerging fast bowler from Geelong Cricket Club while Hatzoglou is a leg-spinner who played with Melbourne University before joining Adelaide side prospect.
"Brody and Peter will benefit from being around and training with the group and if an opportunity arises, they'll be ready to shine," Klinger said.
Renegades squad: Noor Ahmad (AFG), Cameron Boyce, Zak Evans, Aaron Finch (c), Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sam Harper, Marcus Harris, Mackenzie Harvey, Jon Holland, Benny Howell (ENG), Josh Lalor, Shaun Marsh, Mohammad Nabi (AFG), James Pattinson, Mitch Perry, Jack Prestwidge, Kane Richardson, Rilee Rossouw (RSA), Will Sutherland, Imran Tahir (RSA), Imad Wasim (PAK), Beau Webster.
Local Replacement Players: Brody Couch (Marcus Harris), Peter Hatzoglou (Will Sutherland).
