From Paris with love: pace bowler returns to Furnace

A Scorcher between BBL|05 and BBL|10, Paris returns following stints at the Stars (BBL|13 and BBL|14) and Hobart Hurricanes (BBL|11 and BBL|12).

He finished BBL|14 among the competition’s most effective new ball bowlers, contributing to the Stars’ late-season form surge with nine wickets at 16.11 in six matches.

Paris struck frequently during the PowerPlay and enjoyed the most miserly campaign of his career, conceding just 6.59 runs per over despite often contending with fielding restrictions. Scorchers allrounder Ashton Agar (5.83) was the only player to record better economy rate.

The 32-year-old left-armer, who has taken 38 wickets in 44 BBL games, adds considerable skill and experience to the Scorchers’ pace attack.

Reflecting on returning to Perth Scorchers, Paris said:

“To be back home and reconnect with the guys who I was already playing for nine months of the year is super exciting, and I can’t wait to get stuck in next year.

“These are the guys I’ve played with, some of them for 15 years professionally and even longer since we were kids. They are my best mates. I enjoy going to work with them every day, trying to get better at cricketers and as people. A lot of us now, we’ve been married and our kids are growing up together so over that Christmas festive period when you want to be close to family and friends, it just felt right to come home and be part of this group for 12 months of the years.

“I started my T20 career at a packed out WACA Ground. It was an amazing way, as a young kid, to experience a packed out WACA crowd. Then experiencing it a little bit over at Optus before heading east for a few years – I think everyone is jealous of the fans over here. They always seem to turn out and watch the boys play regardless of how the season’s panning out. It’s obviously a really exciting prospect to get back to Optus, playing in front of a home crowd.”

Perth Scorchers General Manager – High Performance Cricket and Elite Teams, Kade Harvey said:

“We identified the need for another new ball bowler with and saw this as a great opportunity to bring Joel back to Perth.

"Joel had a strong BBL|14 season for the Stars, bowling a lot of his overs during the PowerPlay. We also like having a left-arm pace bowler in the squad.  

"He's an excellent leader and has been an enormous contributor for WA over many years, so we’re looking forward to having him throughout the whole summer.”

Perth Scorchers’ current squad for KFC BBL|15: Ashton Turner ©, Ashton Agar, Finn Allen, Mahli Beardman, Cooper Connolly, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kelly, Lance Morris, Joel Paris, Jhye Richardson.

The BBL Player Movement Window ends Thursday 6 February at 2pm, WA time.