Jhye Richardson joins Perth Scorchers for Northern Territory tour

Jhye Richardson is set to make his long-awaited return to Australian cricket in the upcoming weeks, as he has been selected to play for the Perth Scorchers in the Top End T20 tournament in Darwin. This will be his first game in Australia since January, and fans are eagerly anticipating his comeback.

Richardson is the most notable inclusion in the Scorchers' group which is largely made up of younger players on the fringes of the BBL and Western Australia sides plus some from the WA academy.

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Richardson, who was handed a Cricket Australia contract in March, has not played a game at home since injuring himself during the BBL. He made one appearance for Delhi Capitals in the IPL earlier this year.

He has been part of an Australia training camp in Brisbane this week but was not considered for next month's tour of Scotland and England with the selectors taking a longer-term view in the hope of him overcoming the injury issues which have hampered his international career. He had been in line for an ODI return against West Indies last season before picking up a side strain.

"He's fit and firing now, and again looking for match opportunities," national selector George Bailey said last month. "I think he'll get opportunities again across the summer."

Richardson will be joined in the squad by fellow quick Matt Kelly whose season was also ended early by injury. Batter Sam Fanning has been named captain while Baxter Holt, who moved to Western Australia from New South Wales, is also included.

"We also see this tournament as an opportunity for Jhye and Kells [Matt Kelly] to find touch in a competitive environment," stand-in coach Tim MacDonald said. "They didn't play a lot of cricket last year but they're a big part of what we do at the Scorchers and WA, so we're looking forward to seeing both of them back in action."

The Top End competition also features Northern Territory Strike, Pakistan A, ACT, Melbourne Renegades, Melbourne Stars and a Bangladesh High Performance side.