Deals roll in for batting rock star

The quality of the fledgling US Major League cricket T20 tournament will rival the Big Bash after emerging star Jake Fraser-McGurk joined a list of players including Travis Head and Steve Smith in signing on.

Amid what he called a “hell of a 12 months”, the 22-year-old, who sparkled in his IPL debut with a half-century, will join the San Francisco Unicorns for 2024.

Head and Smith are both headline acts for the Washington Freedom in a league set to benefit from the T20 World Cup being played in the US and Caribbean before its second season gets under way.

For Fraser-McGurk, it will be the third overseas T20 league he plays in 2024 after representing the Dubai Capitals in the UAE’s ILT20 in late January before being drafted into their IPL affiliate and now getting a US call-up.

It continues a whirlwind period for the batting dynamo who blasted an 18-ball innings of 41 in his second ODI for Australia against the West Indies and remains an outsider for a T20 World Cup call-up.

“It’s all happened so quick, this time last year I was struggling to get a contract for my state, got offered a rookie contract for Victoria and ended up signing with South Australia and that move has really helped me,” Fraser-McGurk told the IPL website

“Ever since then I’ve had a good Big Bash, played ILT20, made my debut for Australia and now a debut here and got 50, so it’s all happened so quick and it’s been a hell of a 12 months.”

The world record holder for the fastest 50-over century, Fraser-McGurk was called into the IPL after a hamstring injury to probable Australian T20 captain Mitch Marsh that forced him out of the tournament.

He’s played just the one game and smashed 55 of just 35 balls with five sixes to underline his ability.

Australians in the 2024 MLC

LA Knight Riders: Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson

MI New York: Tim David

San Francisco Unicorns: Matt Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Brody Couch

Washington Freedom: Travis Head, Steve Smith,