Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Wednesday announced the signing of South Africa’s Tabraiz Shamsi, the world no. 1 ranked T20I bowler, who will be joining the squad for the remainder of the 14th edition of the cash-rich league, scheduled to be held in the UAE from September 19.
The left-arm leg spinner from Johannesburg, is the second replacement player for the franchise.
Shamsi, 31, represents The Titans in South Africa’s domestic cricket, and made his international debut for South Africa during a bilateral T20I series against England in 2017.
The left-arm leg spinner has since picked up 45 wickets in 39 T20Is, along with 32 wickets in 27 ODIs for his nation.
In the IPL, Shamsi has played 4 matches in which he picked up 3 wickets for Royals Challengers Bangalore, who had recruited him as a replacement player during the 2016 season.
Meanwhile, RR also announced that Andrew Tye won’t be available for the remainder of the IPL season.
“It is with great regret that I have to pull out of the remainder of the IPL 2021 with the Rajasthan Royals. It has been a long year for me which has kept me away from home for a lengthy period, and the disappointment of not making it to the World Cup squad has added to the dismay. Therefore, keeping my best interests in mind, I had to make this tough decision of staying at home and preparing myself mentally and physically for next year’s T20 World Cup,” Tye said.
“I am gutted that I won’t be able to rejoin the Royals family this year, but like all the fans out there, I will be cheering the team on,” he added.