England county club Sussex Cricket on Wednesday announced the signing of all-rounder Ravi Bopara from Essex.
The 34-year-old is one of the outstanding white-ball players of his generation. His 6,646 runs in 331 T20 appearances make Ravi the format's 19th highest run-scorer of all time, while there are only 28 players with more T20 wickets than his 221.
He has played in many of the biggest tournaments around the world, including the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Big Bash League (BBL) and for England in both the 50-over and T20 World Cups.
Ravi has played 38 T20Is and his 120 ODIs that make him England's 16th most capped player in the format. In all List A cricket, he has 9,845 runs at an average over 40 and a top score of 201 not out, as well as 248 wickets from 323 matches.
After completing his move to Sussex, Ravi said: "I want to thank Sussex for this opportunity. It is a great chance to play under a respected and acknowledged coach like Jason Gillespie and with a very strong and talented team of players, many of whom will no doubt go on to receive international honours."
"On a personal note, I have a burning desire to achieve greater things in this wonderful game. I will now put a greater emphasis on T20 cricket. I am fitter and stronger than I have ever been and playing my best cricket," he added.
In English domestic cricket, Ravi was part of the Essex team that have won two of the last three County Championships, this year's Vitality Blast as well as one-day competitions in 2005, 2006 and 2008.
Sussex head coach Gillespie said: "I'm really, really excited about having Ravi Bopara join us at Sussex. It's a bit of a coup for us to be perfectly honest: What a wonderful player Ravi has been for England and Essex for a long, long time."
"His knowledge and experience are going to be invaluable in our dressing room. He's a great lad and we're very thankful that Ravi has decided to join us. Players and coaches alike are excited to work with him and learn from him," he added.
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