5 international cricketers who recently shifted to the USA

USA Cricket aims to become a superpower in the sport soon and are making moves to increase interest in the game. The United States' cricket-governing body has decided to launch the Major League Cricket tournament and offer lucrative deals to the foreign players to shift to the United States permanently.

Every sports fan will know about the USA's dominance at the Olympics. However, cricket has been a sport where the United States team has not achieved much success. Even though stadiums in the USA have played host to some of the West Indies cricket team's home matches, interest in the sport has been limited.

Nevertheless, this time, the organizers are adamant about bringing about a change. With the organizers planning to include cricket in the Olympics soon and Los Angeles set to host the 2028 Olympics, USA Cricket has tried to gain the services of the world's top cricketers.

Here are five international cricketers who recently moved to the USA.

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5. Xavier Marshall

Xavier Marshall came into the spotlight after his 157-run knock for the West Indies cricket team in an ODI match against Canada. Unfortunately, that innings proved to be his only century in one-day cricket for the Men in Maroon.

Marshall played his last ODI game for the West Indies cricket team in 2009. Ten years later, he made his ODI debut for the USA team. Playing against Papua New Guinea, Marshall scored 11 runs off nine deliveries. In the last three years, he has registered one ODI fifty for the USA cricket team.

It is pertinent to note Marshall played seven Tests for the West Indies team. He also donned the Caribbean jersey six times in the game's shortest format and has played seven T20Is for the USA cricket team.

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4. Corey Anderson

Corey Anderson won the hearts of cricket fans with his explosive batting performances. He could destroy bowlers with his hard-hitting abilities and the southpaw also bowled medium pace.

Anderson represented the New Zealand cricket team in the 2015 Cricket World Cup. He even played for the Mumbai Indians, the Delhi Capitals, and the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL.

Unfortunately, injuries derailed Anderson's career and the all-rounder ended his New Zealand career in 2020. During the strict lockdown last year, Anderson spent most of his time in the United States, and his fiancee Mary Shamburger is an American. Anderson has signed a 3-year deal, which will see him perform in Major League Cricket.

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3. Shehan Jayasuriya

Unlike Corey Anderson, Shehan Jayasuriya is yet to sign a deal with the Major League Cricket. However, the former Sri Lankan all-rounder has shifted to the USA with his family.

Jayasuriya informed Sri Lanka Cricket he would no longer represent them at the international level. He had played 12 ODIs and 18 T20Is for the Sri Lankan national team. He also played for the Galle Gladiators in LPL 2020.

Shehan is a left-handed batsman who bowls right-arm off-spin. It will be interesting to see if the Sri Lankan star considers restarting his cricketing career in the United States.

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2. Juan Theron

Juan 'Rusty' Theron had wowed the fans with his death-bowling skills in the shorter formats. The South African speedster represented the Deccan Chargers, Kings XI Punjab, and the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.

However, the player's international career never took off. He has only played nine T20Is and four ODI matches for the South African cricket team. In 2015, Theron quit the South African team and shifted to the United States to pursue a teaching degree at a local college.

USA Cricket kept an eye on him, and after he fulfilled the ICC's three-year residency criteria, Theron was available to play for the USA team. So far, the right-arm pacer has played nine ODIs for the United States.

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1. Sami Aslam

Former Pakistan opener Sami Aslam was frustrated after receiving a demotion to the Balochistan 2nd XI team at the domestic level. The left-handed batsman, who played 13 Tests and 4 ODIs for Pakistan, has left his country a signed a Major League Cricket deal.

Aslam will be eligible to play ODIs and T20Is for the USA cricket team by 2023. The Lahore-born cricketer is a veteran, having played 76 first-class matches, 80 List-A games, and 34 T20s.

His experience could help the USA cricket team perform better in the coming years. With USA Cricket aggressively pursuing foreign players, it will not be a surprise if more cricketers consider moving to the United States.