Canberra cricket star misses out on state contract

The Canberra product was one of four big names to be left off WA's 30-player squad announced on Saturday - along with Marcus Stoinis, Ashton Agar and Andrew Tye.

Behrendorff's currently recovering from a broken leg he suffered batting in the nets last month - just before he was due to fly out for a stint with the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.

The 34-year-old was batting at the WACA when he was struck just above his left ankle - fracturing his fibula.

With a potential eight-week recovery time, Behrendorff could still be fit for Australia's T20 World Cup squad to play in the USA and Caribbean in June.

He could also be ready in time for England's T20 Blast, which starts May 31.

The left-arm quick played three T20 Internationals for Australia - against the West Indies - in February before he was injured.

His T20 efforts for Australia last year saw him named T20 player of the year at Cricket Australia's awards night in January.

While Behrendorff's been a mainstay of the Perth Scorcher's bowling attack in the Big Bash League and for WA in the one-day domestic competition, he hasn't played Sheffield Shield for WA since 2017.

Having also missed out on a Cricket Australia contract for 2024-25, it could free up Behrendorff to travel the world as a T20 gun for hire in the various domestic T20 leagues around the world - like the IPL, BBL and T20 Blast.

"We're very happy with the balance of our list, and we believe we're well placed to continue the incredible run of success we've enjoyed in recent years," WA Cricket high performance boss Kade Harvey said.

"Ashton, Jason and AJ will continue to be supported by our high performance program as valued members of the WA Cricket setup."