Lancashire have announced the overseas signing of New Zealand batter Tom Bruce.
Bruce becomes the Club’s second overseas signing – following Nathan Lyon – and will arrive at Emirates Old Trafford in April ahead of spending the full 2024 season with the Red Rose.
32-year-old Bruce is an experienced middle order batter who plays all three formats and has made 17 T20 international appearances for New Zealand.
In red ball cricket, Bruce averages just shy of 50 with the bat from 75 First-Class matches scoring 5,334 runs including 10 centuries. Bruce has enjoyed strong form for Central Districts in the Plunkett Shield during the last three seasons – scoring 858 runs at 143 in 2021/22, 705 runs at 70 in 2022/23 and currently has 235 runs from three matches in the ongoing 2023/24 season.
He was rewarded for his fine form with a call-up to the New Zealand A squad in September, scoring 221 runs at 73 – including an unbeaten century in the second unofficial Test – as he captained the side to victory against Australia A.
Bruce’s exploits in the Super Smash – New Zealand’s domestic T20 competition – earned him a first senior call up for the National Team back in 2017, earning 17 caps since making his T20 international debut against Bangladesh in Napier. From 108 career T20 matches, Bruce has scored 2,412 runs hitting at a strike rate of 145 with 16 half-centuries.
His only previous spell in English domestic cricket came at Sussex during the Vitality Blast in 2018.
Speaking after signing with Lancashire Cricket for the 2024 season, Tom Bruce said:“This is a really exciting opportunity for me, and I can’t wait to get over to England in a few months’ time.
“To have the opportunity to spend a full county cricket season with a Club like Lancashire is a dream come true and to have Emirates Old Trafford as my home ground was another massive draw for me once I heard about the interest.
“I feel that I have a lot to add to Lancashire and after speaking to Mark Chilton and Dale Benkenstein I am really excited about what we can achieve together with such a talented group of players in the 2024 season.”
Director of Cricket Performance, Mark Chilton, also commented:
“Tom will be available throughout the 2024 season, and this was a big draw for myself and Dale when going into the market for our overseas signings for this year. This will allow Tom to settle in, become part of the squad and create consistency and stability in our team selections throughout the summer.
“Tom is a hugely experienced cricketer, and we feel that his skillset will be a good fit within our squad. He has had a hugely impressive few years with the bat in domestic cricket over in New Zealand – with an outstanding record in both the Plunkett Shield and Super Smash competitions as well as for New Zealand A and is very close to full international selection.
“With the ICC T20 World Cup taking place in June and July this year at the same time as the Vitality Blast, the availability of overseas options is at a premium. Therefore, Tom’s quality, experience and full season availability makes him a strong addition to the squad.
“We believe that Tom will offer us a lot of options as he strengthens our middle order in the County Championship whilst his powerful hitting will give our batting line-up a new dimension towards the backend of an innings in the Vitality Blast and Metro Bank One Day Cup.”
