AUCKLAND: Corey Anderson has quit international cricket for New Zealand and will play the sport in the United States of America.
The 29-year-old all-rounder, who holds the record for the second fastest hundred in ODIs, will start with Major League T20 Cricket in USA and will likely go on to represent USA in international cricket.
Anderson has an American fiancée Mary Shamburger and he spent most of the Covid-19 pandemic in Texas, where Shamburger is based.
According to a report in ESPNCricinfo, "ODI status is spurring an ambitious recruitment drive by USA Cricket that could eventually lead to it fielding active internationals from around the world."
USA Cricket, as part of a strategy with its commercial partner American Cricket Enterprises, is looking to rope in international cricketers. Pakistan Test cricketer Sami Aslam and England's 2019 World Cup-winning team player Liam Plunkett are also on the radar of USA Cricket.
Former South Africa players Rusty Theron and Dane Piedt have already signed up to play in USA.
The Major League T20 Cricket received a boost on Tuesday after Kolkata Knight Riders, which owns Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League and the Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League, announced "a significant long-term investment" in Major League Cricket, which is expected to start in 2022.