James Pattinson walks out of his contract with Melbourne Renegades

Former Australian pacer James Pattinson has confirmed that he will not be returning to Melbourne Renegades this BBL season despite having a year left to run on his contract.

Melbourne Renegades had roped Pattinson on a three-year contract deal ahead of the 2020 season. However, the Victorian will depart with one year left in the contract to manage his body ahead of the second half of Victoria's Sheffield Shield campaign.

"Unfortunately, I could only commit to part of the season given my state and overseas cricket commitments. I'll need to take a break in December to give my body a rest, and I also want to spend that Christmas period with family. I'd like to thank the Renegades for my time there and wish them all the best for the season," James Pattinson confirmed.

In his last season for the Renegades, the seasoned made six appearances in the 2021-22 season, where he claimed just three wickets before ending his season early due to managing injuries amid the challenge of the Covid restrictions at the time.

Pattinson is currently in the UK, where he's playing for Nottinghamshire. The right-arm quick rediscovered some of his best form during his stint with Notts, where he sits among the top 10 wicket-takers in the division two County Championship Division this season with 19 from his five matches.

The 32-year-old had claimed 15 wickets at an average of 31.26 in last season's Sheffield Shield campaign, where his team Victoria finished runners-up.

"We'd like to thank James (Pattinson) for his efforts as a Renegades. We understand the position he's in with prioritising his County and State cricketing commitments and appreciate him being upfront with us," said Melbourne Renegades General Manager James Rosengarten.

"With James only being available for part of the season, we feel the best option for us is to utilise this listing spot on a player who can fully commit to the Renegades for all of BBL12."

The BBL contracting embargo lifted this week following the launch of the international player draft, meaning domestic players and clubs can officially sign new deals. Rosengarten revealed that they're working on getting more players on board for the upcoming season of the Big Bash.

"Alongside our head coach David Saker and our coaching team, we have been working through our list management strategy for the past six months to turn things around on-field in BBL|12, with a view to our domestic player mix and then how to complement that through the draft," Rosengarten said.

"Over the coming months, we look forward to announcing some re-signings and the addition of some new domestic and international players. We are building a team which will play an exciting brand of cricket for our fans, but most importantly with a view to taking the Renegades back into the finals mix."

Melbourne Renegades squad for BBL 12 (Names to be added): Zak Evans, Aaron Finch, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sam Harper, Mackenzie Harvey, Nic Maddinson, Shaun Marsh, Kane Richardson.