Olivier quits South Africa to sign Kolpak deal with Yorkshire

Yorkshire have signed Duanne Olivier on a three-year Kolpak deal which will mean the 26-year-old fast bowler turning his back on international cricket with South Africa.
Olivier has taken 48 wickets at better than 20 apiece in a 10-Test career that now appears to be over, while he also recently made his ODI debut for the Proteas in this World Cup year.
But the security of a three-year county contract has proven too tempting, and Olivier becomes the latest in a long line of South African players to make the move to English cricket via the Kolpak route.
2 – Duanne Olivier has taken 48 Test wickets at an average of just 19.3 since the start of 2017; only one bowler (Mohammad Abbas, 18.9) has a better rate in that time (20+ wickets). Signature. pic.twitter.com/K0ElOF7mZG
— OptaJim (@OptaJim) February 26, 2019
Olivier had just broken into the world’s top-20 Test bowlers and his arrival will be a major boost for the White Rose.
“I would be lying if I said this wasn’t a difficult decision to make,” said Olivier. “It’s giving up playing for my country with no guarantees of playing international cricket again. But, at the end of the day, I needed to be true to myself.
“I’ve only got this one chance to see where my talent can take me and Yorkshire just felt right to me.”
READ MORE
Middlesex announce signing of De Villiers for 2019 T20 Blast
Five of the most spectacular batting collapses in the 21st century
Cricket South Africa expressed their disappointment at Olivier’s decision after offering him a two-year deal.
CSA Chief Executive Thabang Moroe said: “We find it extremely disappointing that Duanne has taken this step after all the opportunities we have given him, particularly over the past season and going forward, to live his dream of being an international cricketer.
“He was upgraded to a national contract during the current season on the strength of his outstanding performances in our Test squad and we offered him a two-year contract which would have given him financial security through to the end of the 2020-2021 season.
“He was not short of opportunity either as he played in all six Castle Lager Test matches against Pakistan and Sri Lanka during the current summer and was also considered for white-ball selection.
“If one looks at the bigger picture this is not good news for the global game either that a player who has just broken into the top 20 on the ICC Test match bowling rankings for the first time should opt effectively to bring down the curtain on his international career in favour of playing only in domestic leagues.”
Latest
-
News
Joe Root wants England to free themselves from fear in fourth Test against India
The tourists will be hoping to level the series at 2-2 when they start the final match in Ahmedabad.
-
News
Zak Crawley vows England will be more proactive in battle against India’s spin
Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel have run riot in helpful conditions.
-
News
Dale Steyn heaps praise on Pakistan trio, prefers PSL over IPL
Record South African fast bowler Dale Steyn is full of praise for Pakistan players Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and Babar Azam.
-
News
Chris Gayle sets sights on third T20 World Cup title
West Indies veteran Chris Gayle has set his sights on winning a third T20 World Cup when he makes his return to international cricket.
-
News
Cricket in line to receive significant chunk of £300m sports recovery package
The England and Wales Cricket Board welcomed the support, describing it as “a lifeline for parts of the game”.
-
News
Marcus Trescothick relishing return to ‘special environment’ with England
Trescothick is England’s new batting coach.
-
News
Jack Leach feels here to stay after establishing himself as top England spinner
Leach made his debut almost three years ago in New Zealand but had made only 10 appearances before the turn of the year.
-
News
Kevin O’Brien says century against England helped Ireland ‘reach for the stars’
O’Brien hit a 50-ball 113 as Ireland chased down a target of 328 in the 2011 World Cup.
-
News
Ian Harvey is Gloucestershire interim coach after Richard Dawson joins England
Dawson has accepted the position of ECB elite pathway coach
-
News
Marcus Trescothick, Jon Lewis and Jeetan Patel join England’s coaching staff
Trescothick has left his assistant’s role at Somerset.