Sussex, on Friday (May 28th), announced the signing of West Indies international Obed McCoy as a cover for Rashid Khan, who will be missing the initial matches of the 2022 season of T20 Blast due to his stint with Gujarat Titans (GT) and a three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe in June.
The West Indian bowler, who is currently playing for Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the IPL, will join the last year’s semi-finalist for the games against Middlesex, Hampshire, Surrey, and Gloucestershire after completing his stint with the Royals.
Rashid's availability came under the scanner due to his involvement with the Titans, playing the IPL Final on Sunday (May 29th) and an Afghanistan tour to Zimbabwe for a three-match ODI series.
Sussex already suffered a setback after signing Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammed Rizwan, with Pakistan announcing a new schedule for West Indies ODIs clashing with the Blast's schedule. Later Josh Philippe, who was supposed to be the partial replacement for the Pakistani international, will be replaced by Tim Seifert for a short term, as the former will be flying back for a tour of Sri Lanka with Australia A.
McCoy opened up on the deal with Sussex and said:
“I am delighted to be joining Sussex, and I am excited to play cricket in the UK for the first time. I am looking forward to getting started and helping the team to win games."
The 25-year-old has represented West Indies in thirteen T20Is, taking 19 wickets at an economy rate of 7.61, after making his debut in 2019 against England. His first breakthrough series came against South Africa last year when he took 9 wickets in the five-match series at an average of 15.67. He announced himself as someone who can be very successful in the shorter format, especially with the number of skills he has in the death.
Speaking on roping in the left-arm pacer, Sussex's head coach James Kirtley said:
“Obed will be a fantastic addition to our team. He is an up-and-coming world-class T20 cricketer.
“Fresh off a very successful IPL, he can bowl with pace and has great skills at the death. We look forward to welcoming into the Sharks team and look forward to him performing in a crucial period of the campaign,” he added.
Sussex did not have a great start to their T20 campaign, having lost their first two games against Glamorgan and Gloucestershire. On the other hand, McCoy gave a brilliant performance in the Qualifier 2, restricting RCB to just 157, before Jos Buttler's masterclass took the Royals to their first final in 14 years.
McCoy gave just 10 runs in the last two overs, finishing with a figure of 3 for 23 in four overs, and will be playing the IPL Final on Sunday.