Jackson Bird, the seam bowler who recorded second innings figures of five for 59 in Australia’s recent victory over New Zealand, has signed for Nottinghamshire.
The 29-year-old, who has played five Tests, taking 21 wickets at 25.28, replaces his fellow countryman Peter Siddle, who was ruled out of joining the Club for 2016 by a stress fracture of the back.
Bird will be available for the first ten matches of the Specsavers County Championship season. He is not expected to feature for the Outlaws in white ball cricket, with Dan Christian now set to feature in the 50-over format as well as NatWest T20 Blast.
“Having a bowler of international quality to spearhead our young seam attack is important for us, so we knew what type of player we wanted to go for,” said Director of Cricket Mick Newell.
“After Peter got injured, Jackson is the man Australia turned to. He performed very well in that Test match, he’s a similar bowler to Peter in many ways and he was the obvious choice for us in the circumstances.
“Jackson is also very suitable for English conditions, particularly the types of pitches we play on at Trent Bridge.
“Pairing him with Stuart Broad early in the season, with real competition for the other two places, is an exciting combination for us.”
Bird, who was born in Sydney but plays for Tasmania, made his Test debut in 2012 and took 7-117 in his second appearance against Sri Lanka.
A fast-medium bowler in the Siddle mould of seam, swing and consistent line-and-length, Bird’s 45-game first class career has yielded 185 wickets at 24.56, with nine five-wicket hauls.
He is familiar with conditions in the UK having featured in the 2013 Ashes and played six matches for Hampshire in 2015.
"Notts are a really good club and I have heard a lot about them from fellow Australians who have been there before, such as Ed Cowan and Peter Siddle," said Bird.
"Trent Bridge is a famous English venue and I heard plenty about it when I was living with Andre Adams last year.
“I can't wait to get over there, get to know the lads and to play my home games at the ground.
"My general style is to trouble the batsmen and get them playing at balls they shouldn’t.
“The surfaces in England and at Trent Bridge should suit the way I bowl, so I can't wait to get started."
The 2015 season saw dramatic last-gasp four day victories, thrilling limited-overs contests and an historic Investec Ashes Test, all in the unique surroundings of Trent Bridge.
Next season, we’d wager, will be no less enthralling and frankly we’d hate for you to miss out.