“Sussex is an extremely ambitious club and I look forward to being part of their future”
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South Africa all-rounder David Wiese has confirmed that he has signed a three-year Kolpak deal with England county side Sussex.
Wiese, who represented South Africa in six ODIs and 20 Twenty20 Internationals, joined Kyle Abbott and Rilee Rossouw, both of whom inked deals with Hampshire, as the latest Proteas player to give up his international career.
The 31-year-old played for Sussex last season and enjoyed a lot of success as he made 153 runs in six County Championship matches at an average of 21.85. He also took 19 wickets at an average of 24.
He only featured in one Royal London Cup match, but made 41 runs. As for the Natwest T20 Blast, he scored 26 runs in four matches and claimed six wickets at an average of 17.16.
“I would like to thank Cricket South Africa for giving me the opportunity of fulfilling my lifelong dream of representing my country in the sport I love,” Wiese said. “I am very excited to be joining Sussex on a long-term deal. I thoroughly enjoyed my stint with the club last year and it made my decision so much easier when offered to return. Sussex is an extremely ambitious club and I look forward to being part of their future.”
Sussex head coach Mark Davis added: “We are thrilled to have David joining us at Sussex. He is an extremely accomplished all-round cricketer who is effective in all formats and will bring great experience and skill to our group.
“He will add significantly to our white-ball team with his bowling and powerful batting at the death and has already shown his potential last season in the longer format. His experience will be invaluable to our young developing team.”
Wiese will still continue to ply his trade for South African domestic side Titans, but the team’s chief executive officer Jacques Faul admitted that the Roodepoort native’s decision to join Sussex on a Kolpak deal was a disappointing one.
“David’s decision to sign a Kolpak-deal for Sussex is indeed a sad day for us at the franchise and for South Africa,” he said. “It is sad because we obviously pride ourselves in being a successful conveyor belt for international players. South Africa is losing the services of a match-winning all-rounder whose tremendous straight hitting and masterful change of pace makes him an asset to any team.
“We are indebted to David because he has been very frank with us from the start, and he has handled the whole process with professionalism and integrity.
“He has also committed himself to represent the Titans for the rest of his career. He is a whole-hearted performer and a dedicated human being who commands the utmost respect.
“We wish David a very successful Kolpak-career for Sussex and trust that he will be a proud flag-bearer of South Africa and the Titans.”