Further boost for T20 Blast as Bears bring in McCullum

Brendon McCullum has agreed to play seven T20s for Birmingham this summer in a deal that further allays fears that the NatWest T20 Blast will be starved of international quality.

McCullum gained the love of world cricket with his batting, leadership and attitude in captaining New Zealand to the World Cup final. He brings his side to tour England this summer and will stay on following the internationals for his stint in the NatWest Blast beginning on June 26 against Lancashire, giving a big boost to the reigning champions.

"Brendon's dynamic performances in the World Cup have demonstrated once again exactly why he is one of the most feared batsmen in the game," Dougie Brown, Warwickshire director of cricket, said. "Securing his availability for our last seven games has to make him one of the biggest overseas player signings in the competition's history.

"His power at the top of the order and experience of playing in big matches are great assets to bolster our already strong squad as we look to win through to the quarter finals and defend our NatWest T20 Blast title."

McCullum, who has previously played T20 for Sussex in 2010 and Glamorgan in 2006, joins Aaron Finch, Glenn Maxwell, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Martin Guptill, Grant Elliott, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Chris Gayle as World Cup stars who will play in this season's NatWest Blast.

"Hopefully I can make a big contribution and ensure that we can progress in the tournament," McCullum, the leading run-scorer in international T20s, said. "Edgbaston is a fantastic ground to play at and hopefully it will be rocking for the big Friday night matches. I'm really excited about becoming a Bear and the challenge ahead."

The Bears' title defence begins on May 15 against Nottinghamshire. McCullum will join for the final seven matches of the group stage.