Clitheroe is delighted to announce the signing of New Zealand batting all-rounder, Michael Bracewell, for their 2022 Lancashire League campaign.

A high-class leader / all-rounder

Bracewell is an experienced batting allrounder who has skippered the Wellington Firebirds for the past 4 seasons.

Since his List A debut in January 2011, he has played nearly 300 domestic matches across the three formats. He has captained the Firebirds to successive T20 titles over the past two seasons (2019/20-20/21) and more recently skippered the New Zealand A side against Pakistan (Dec 2020).

He was recently selected to represent the Blackcaps in the T20 and ODI series against Bangladesh and Pakistan, respectively, but withdrew due to the impending arrival of his first child.

A domestic star

As a batter, the left-hander has scored almost 10,000 runs across the three formats, with an average over 32. In recent years, he has transformed himself into a genuine all-rounder, with his off-spin taking near 50 wickets over the past two seasons.

Last summer (2020/21), Bracewell claimed five Cricket Wellington awards, including “Player’s Player of the Year”, “All-Rounder of the Year”, and “Fielder of the Year”.

Nephew of former internationals John and Brendon, and son of Otago cricketer Mark, it was no surprise that Michael has excelled in the game. He, along with his cousin, Doug, was named in the New Zealand squad for the ICC Under-19 World Cup in 2010. He has since dominated the domestic circuit, with over 5,000 runs at 34 with 11 centuries in Plunket Shield cricket (first-class), and nearly 5,000 runs in white-ball cricket with 2 centuries.

Last summer was arguably his highlight, to include centuries in each Plunket Shield innings against Auckland, then 135 against West Indies A. He also bagged 27 wickets across the three formats, including 8 wickets at 16.62 in New Zealand’s T20 competition.

Bracewell set for the Lancashire League in 2022

The Wellington skipper is now st to return abroad in 2022, having last enjoyed a prolonged stint in England playing for the MCC YC’s more than a decade ago (2009). He will turn out for Lancashire League side Clitheroe where he hopes to help the side to League and Cup trophies.