BBL bombshell as Heat success story poached by Renegades
Brisbane Heat blaster Josh Brown has signed with the Melbourne Renegades for the 2024/25 Big Bash League season.
Having played a crucial role at the top of the order in the Heat’s BBL13 triumph last summer, including a stunning 57-ball 140 in their Challenger final, the 30-year old, who only made his BBL debut in January 2023 after a long period as a Queensland premier cricket star, has been headhunted by the Renegades in an attempt to turn around the Victorian franchise’s years of struggle.
Since winning the BBL title in 2018/19, the Renegades have missed the finals in four out of five seasons, and have given Brown a two-year contract in an attempt to turn things around.
In a statement, Renegades general manager James Rosengarten pointed to Brown’s ‘good balance of aggression and composure’ as the reason for his acquisition.
“We’ve identified a clear role for Josh in our batting order which will have a new look this year,” Rosengarten said.
“Josh possesses a good balance of aggression and composure, which we all witnessed in the recent BBL finals series. We’ve been watching Josh for a while so his strong season and BBL finals series were no surprise.”
Josh Brown celebrates a century during the BBL Challenger final. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
Brown is the second high-profile name to depart the Heat since their shock BBL final win over the Sydney Sixers to claim their second championship, with coach Wade Seccombe departing after being told by Queensland Cricket he would need to re-apply for his jobs at both the Heat and for Queensland.
Brown thanked the Heat in a parting message, but said he is ‘extremely excited’ to join the Renegades and play alongside a group of up-and-coming guns, singling out Jake Fraser-McGurk and Will Sutherland in particular.
“I’ve enjoyed my time with the Heat,” he said.
“They gave me my opportunity, for which I’ll always be grateful and have cherished memories including winning a BBL Championship last season. But I am extremely excited for a new challenge and hopefully achieve the same success with the Renegades.
“It’s a young group with a lot of talent and firepower, especially in that batting group. I can’t wait to partner with the likes of Fraser-McGurk and Sutherland and see what we can do.”
Brown made 624 runs at 27.13 in 23 matches for the Heat, at a whopping strike rate of 149.64.
His exploits at the end of the 2023/24 summer led to a contract with the Chattogram Challengers in the Bangladesh Premier League, as well as a Marsh Cup debut for Queensland in February.