Munro back for second Worcestershire stint

Worcestershire have agreed to bring back New Zealand allrounder Colin Munro as their second overseas player in the NatWest T20 Blast. Munro was part of the squad which reached the quarter-finals in 2014.

Munro has not played for New Zealand since last year's World T20 and should again be available to play throughout the Blast, which runs from May through to August, with the majority of matches on Friday evenings. Last season Munro was Worcestershire's second-leading run-scorer, with 332 at a strike rate of 141.27, while also picking up seven wickets.

"I'm delighted that Colin is coming back," Worcestershire's director of cricket, Steve Rhodes, said. "To be the second overseas player, as the T20 player, it takes a special breed. You don't play a lot of cricket and have quite a bit of time on the sidelines for a T20 hit once a week.

"You need the right type of cricketer for that, one that has an understanding of the club and dressing room and Colin has got that. He is well liked in the dressing room, is well respected in the dressing room. He was very helpful towards our second team players and played in the second team to make sure he kept in nick. In that sense he is going to be a terrific signing for us.

Worcestershire, who have never reached Finals Day, also employed Saeed Ajmal and Munro's New Zealand team-mate Mitchell McClenaghan in 2014, with the left-armer filling in after Ajmal's departure on international duty. Rhodes has already confirmed that Worcestershire hope to sign Ajmal again this year.

Munro said: "The boys made me feel part of the dressing room and part of the team, even the crowd took to me as one of their own, and I'm looking forward to coming back with the family. The lads showed what they can do and I think we can go onto bigger and better things."