Former BBL star Johan Botha will return to the competition this year as part of the Adelaide Strikers' coaching staff.
Botha is a former Strikers playing, captaining the club in three editions of the competition (BBL02, BBL03 and BBL04), before playing for the Sydney Sixers and Hobart Hurricanes in more recent seasons.
His last season as a player in the competition came during BBL10 with the Hurricanes, finishing with 71 matches to his name in the Australian competition.
A South African international, Botha managed 5 Tests, 78 ODIs and 40 T20Is during his career. All up he played 222 matches in the shortest format, averaging almost 20 with the bat and 28 with the ball, taking 166 wickets with an economy rate of just 6.53.
An experienced and smart cricketer during his time, Botha represented three different IPL clubs in the Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders, while he also had time in the Caribbean Premier League and English T20 competition.
The now 40-year-old will join Jason Gillespie's coaching staff with experience off the park as well, having served as head coach of the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the 2018 Caribbean Premier League and with Islamabad United during the 2021 Pakistan Super League.
“I have so many fantastic memories from Adelaide Oval and can't wait to get to work with Jason Gillespie and the other Strikers support staff,” Botha said in a club statement.
“The squad has great potential coming off a really strong season last summer and I'm looking forward to what we can achieve together in BBL|12.”
Gillespie, who himself has risen through the coaching ranks and was thought to be a candidate to take over the Australian job following Justin Langer's departure earlier this year, said Botha would be a valuable addition to the club.
“Johan has an incredible cricket mind having played in every format and various leagues across the globe,” Gillespie said.
“A man of his experience will be such an asset for our players and us as a collective coaching group. I can't wait to work with him this summer.”
