Renegades add Wells to fill middle-order void in BBL|12

Jon Wells admits he was a little surprised at not being offered a new deal by the Adelaide Strikers but having been quickly snapped up by the Melbourne Renegades he is determined to show he still has plenty to offer in the BBL.

After five seasons in Adelaide, Wells, the competition's fourth most prolific batter of all-time, will join his third Big Bash club in KFC BBL|12 after signing a two-year deal with the Renegades.

The 34-year-old will link up with two of the other top six all-time leading run-scorers in Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh at the 'Gades as the club attempts to avoid a fourth consecutive wooden spoon.

Wells may not be the most box-office T20 batter – his 2,554 runs across the BBL's 11 seasons have yielded only 40 sixes – but his remarkable consistency (he averages almost 35 striking at 122.78) is exactly what the Renegades middle-order has been lacking over the past three seasons.

"It was a little bit unexpected (not being offered a new Strikers contract)," Wells told cricket.com.au from his home in Perth.

"But you understand that people have their reasons for doing certain things and it's provided me with another good opportunity and a new challenge.

"I felt like I was playing some good cricket and still had some good cricket ahead of me.

"So, it's just opened up a new chapter that's really exciting for where I'm at."

Wells will take on somewhat of a mentorship role at the Renegades as he helps guide their young batters in Jake Fraser-McGurk, Mackenzie Harvey and Sam Harper through the back end of an innings.

"That's obviously an area they've identified to get a bit of experience through the middle, that's where I probably see myself fitting in and playing that role," Wells said.

"Finchy and Sos (Marsh) will probably be towards the top so (I'll) add a bit of experience into that middle-order and help these younger guys coming through and try to assist them and keep developing them.

"Being able to pass the things I've learnt over the years to some of these young exciting guys coming through can only be a help for the future."

The Renegades last month poached fast bowler Tom Rogers from Hobart Hurricanes and general manager James Rosengarten said the club had been really targeted in its list management approach during the off-season.

"We identified a need for a player with Jon's skill-set to bolster our middle order," said Rosengarten.

"He's a smart cricketer with a proven ability to adapt his game to whatever the team requires when he's out in the middle.

"We see both Jon and Tom Rogers playing important roles for us and look forward to adding more talent through the overseas draft and our remaining local signings ahead of BBL|12."

Wells, who apart from Premier Cricket now plays solely in the BBL, is coming off an outstanding BBL|11 where he finished as the tournament's second leading run-scorer with 501 at 38.53 behind only Ben McDermott.

He said the off-season could be a "bit lonely" without a state squad but runs a sportswear franchise in Perth where spends most of his time when not training.

"When you're just playing BBL you're left to your own devices a fair bit and your own training methods … I still play club cricket at Perth Cricket Club and hit with a coach outside of that," Wells said.

"'Sos' is one I've played with previously and someone I'm looking forward to reuniting with and playing alongside again.

"There's a good blend of experience and some exciting youth coming through that it's shaping up to be a good list and I'm sure we can turn things, win some games of cricket and push towards finals."

Melbourne Renegades BBL|12 squad (so far): Zak Evans, Aaron Finch, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sam Harper, Mackenzie Harvey, Nic Maddinson (c), Shaun Marsh, Kane Richardson, Tom Rogers, Jon Wells 

Tickets for Weber WBBL and KFC BBL games are on sale to existing members of the Australian Cricket Family now, and will be released to the general public on Thursday, August 18. Get yours at cricket.com.au/big-bash