Sussex sign Kiwi batsman Tom Bruce for T20 Blast

(Photo: Getty Images)

By Adam Ellis

Sussex have signed New Zealand international Tom Bruce for the Vitality Blast this summer.

The right-hand batsman has played in 21 ODIs and 10 T20i for his country and has been playing in England for the past couple of months in the Surrey Premier League for Weybridge.

Bruce has been acquired by Jason Gillespie’s side in order to ease the loss of Kolpak player Stiaan van Zyl through a knee injury.

Sussex head coach Gillespie said: “Tom has experience on the biggest stage with New Zealand and is exactly the type of dynamic middle order stroke maker we’re looking for.

“The injury to Stiaan van Zyl forced us to reassess our squad and we’ve decided that we need to bring in a quality overseas batsman for the duration of the tournament.”

The Sharks set their teeth into Essex in their first match of the campaign on 4 July and the 26 year-old batsman will be available for selection for the duration of the competition.

Supporters at Hove will be able to see the new signing in action on Friday when Sussex play the 2018 Aboriginal XI.