BBL 2020-21: Melbourne Stars' Jonny Bairstow pulls out, Andre Fletcher to replace him

England wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow has made himself unavailable for BBL 2020-21 due to national duty. His team, the Melbourne Stars, have announced West Indian Andre Fletcher as a late replacement.

Jonny Bairstow was expected to join the Stars after Christmas following England's limited-overs tour of South Africa. However, he is now expected to be recalled to England's Test squad for the tour of Sri Lanka in January 2021.

Got a feeling we're going to have a LOT of fun with the Spiceman 😂👉 https://t.co/kSkA5GukAP#TeamGreen 💚 pic.twitter.com/SRrzWSjf2k

— Melbourne Stars (@StarsBBL) December 2, 2020

Fletcher, who is currently in New Zealand for the West Indies tour of the Kiwi nation, is likely to be available for the Stars for the complete season. Courtesy of a Trans-Tasman agreement, he won't even have to undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine after arriving in Australia.

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Stars coach wishes Jonny Bairstow well for England's tour

Hear from @jbairstow21 after his 86* took us to victory in the first IT20 of the series! pic.twitter.com/ygZvDtTBy7

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) November 27, 2020

Melbourne Stars coach David Hussey expressed his disappointment over missing Jonny Bairstow this season, but wished him well for England's tour.

Bairstow is a definite game-changer in white-ball cricket, especially in the T20 format. In 21 IPL games, the Sunrisers Hyderabad opener has an average of over 41 and a strike rate of 142.

He even furthered the hype around his BBL debut when he scored a brilliant 86 not out in the first England vs South Africa T20I on November 27.

"We're naturally disappointed Jonny Bairstow won't be able to link up with us this season but we wish him well on his recall and England's winter tours," Stars coach David Hussey said.

"We're glad Andre was in a position to join us and he'll bring plenty of power and entertainment at the top of the batting order. Andre is a former T20 World Cup winner with the West Indies so he knows what it takes to succeed in major tournaments and I'm confident he'll be a great asset around our group."

A wicketkeeper-batsman himself, Fletcher was part of the West Indies squad that won the 2016 World T20. He is also a household name in the Caribbean Premier League, the Bangladesh Premier League and the Pakistan Super League.

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"I'm really looking forward to coming over to the Melbourne Stars and being part of what should be an exciting season ahead," Fletcher said. "Hopefully I can bring my brand of batting and recent form to the Stars during the BBL."

The BBL fixtures for the 2020-21 season will start on 10th December when defending champions Sydney Sixers take on the Hobart Hurricanes. The Stars will play their first game against the Brisbane Heat on 11th December in Canberra.