Published: Apr 16, 2020, 01:37 PM (IST)
Edited: Apr 16, 2020, 01:30 PM (IST)
Derbyshire have pushed back the signings of Australia pair of Sean Abbott and Ben McDermott to next year as part of their cost cutting measures.
County clubs in England have been cancelling the deals with overseas cricketers with the domestic championship postponed till at least May 28 due to coronavirus pandemic. However, while other county clubs have altogether scrapped their respective deals, Derbyshire have simply delayed the signings to 2021.
“These are unprecedented times and following the postponement of cricket until at least 28 May, and the full impact of the current situation yet to be determined, we need to be mindful of our cricket budget in 2020,” Derbyshire chief executive Ryan Duckett said.
Pacer Abbott was to feature for them across all the formats for the first half of the season while McDermott was to play in One-Day cup and T20 Blast.
“We will keep our options open for this summer, depending on the amount of cricket we are able to play, however we must all now focus on the current challenges across the sport,” Duckett said.
He thanked the duo for their understanding saying the club is looking forward to their participation next season.
“I would like to thank Sean and Ben, as well as their representatives, for their understanding and commitment to playing a big part for Derbyshire and I look forward to welcoming them to The Incora County Ground next summer,” he said.
Cheteshwar Pujara (Gloucestershire), Nathan Lyon (Hampshire), Matt Henry (Kent) and Michael Nesser (Surrey) have already seen their contracts being cancelled this season.
