Sam Whiteman has become the second Australian cricket player in recent weeks to end their Test dreams by signing a County deal in England as a ‘local’ player. It was announced in recent days that Whiteman has signed a three-year deal with Yorkshire in the English domestic comp, returning to the country of his birth.
The highly-regarded wicket-keeper batter has captained Australia A and helped Western Australia win three Sheffield Shield trophies, but is now ineligible to play Test cricket for Australia due to the switch. Whiteman has used his British passport to sign with Yorkshire (where he was born in Doncaster) as a locally-registered player, rather than an overseas one.
Under ICC rules, the 33-year-old will now have to register as an overseas player if he wants to play in Australian domestic leagues moving forward, including the Sheffield Shield. That makes him ineligible for Australia selection at international level.
Sam Whiteman and Jake Lehmann have both played for Australia A and captained their Sheffield Shield teams. Image: Getty
“I’m thrilled to have signed with my home county,” said Whiteman, who moved with his family from Doncaster to Bunbury in WA when he was three. “The timing is right for me to return to the UK and once the opportunity arose for me to sign with Yorkshire, it was one that was too good for me to turn down.”
Whiteman has played 116 games of first-class cricket, scoring 6930 runs at 35.90 with 17 centuries. As well as captaining Western Australia and Australia A, he also played for Australia at Under-19 level.
“Sam is an exceptional batter and a proven leader,” said Yorkshire’s general manager of cricket Gavin Hamilton. “He is an excellent signing for us and we are all so delighted to be signing him on a long-term contract.
“He has a very impressive record, and he is the profile of batsman and player that we value highly. He will be an incredibly important asset for us … We are all looking forward to welcoming Sam home in April.”
Sam Whiteman joins Jake Lehmann with County switch
He’s the second Aussie player to sign with an English county in recent weeks after Jake Lehmann inked a deal with Hampshire. The son of Aussie legend Darren Lehmann, Jake has a British passport like Whiteman.
Jake Lehmann (L) and Sam Whiteman (R) have both given up their Test dreams to sign with English counties. Image: Getty
Lehmann has also played for Australia A, but like Whiteman his chances of playing Test cricket for Australia are slim at age 33. The South Australian has 5684 runs in 97 first-class matches at 34.65. He has 16 career centuries and the third-most runs in the Sheffield Shield this season.
“I feel like the timing is right,” he said last month about the switch to England. “That was always the dream and the goal, but only a small number of people get to do it [play for Australia]. Unfortunately, I haven’t got to do it, but I’m also grateful to have played first-class cricket for the last 12 years and to give back to Australian cricket in some way.”