South Africa fast bowler Andre Nel joined English county Surrey on a three-year contract after announcing his retirement from international cricket on Wednesday
South Africa fast bowler Andre Nel joined English county Surrey on a three-year contract after announcing his retirement from international cricket on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old's stint will begin when the new English season gets underway next month.
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"I am delighted to be joining Surrey as I enter a new phase of my career," Nel, who knows English cricket well, said in a statement issued by the county.
"I have had a number of fantastic experiences here in the UK with South Africa, Northamptonshire and Essex and cannot wait to return to join up with Surrey.
"Surrey are a huge club, entering an exciting new era with Chris Adams at the helm, and I am looking forward to using my experience to work with some of the younger bowlers on the staff and ensure they get back to the top of the English game.
"I cannot wait to arrive in April and pull on the Surrey shirt for the first game of the season."
Surrey cricket manager Chris Adams said: "The addition of Andre Nel to the Surrey dressing room underlines the ambition I have for the club. He has proven pace, power and wicket taking ability and will be a fantastic addition to our pace team."
Thanks to his nationality, Nel has joined Surrey under the controversial Kolpak ruling which allows the citizens of countries who've trade agreements with the European Union to effectively be classed as 'home' players.
That means Surrey can employ New Zealand all-rounder Grant Elliott as an overseas player for the first half of the English season,
Nel joins a Surrey pace attack which also includes West Indies' left-armer Pedro Collins and ex-England quick Alex Tudor.
He played the last of his 36 Tests against England at the Oval in August and finished his five-day career with 123 wickets at an average of 31.86.
Nel took five wickets in a Test innings on three occasions, with a best return of six for 32 when the West Indies were bowled out for just 166 in Barbados in April 2005. Nel also appeared in 79 one-day internationals.
Renowned for his verbal spats with opposition batsmen, Nel has often seemed to enjoy the role of 'pantomime villain' rather than bearing any sense of genuine grievance.
A much calmer figure beyond the boundary, Nel was dubbed 'Gunther' by former South Africa fast bowler Allan Donald to describe how his personality changed when he was playing cricket.
Last season Surrey, whose three most recent County Championship titles came in 1999, 2000 and 2002, were relegated to the second division of English cricket's first-class competition without winning a game.
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