Andre Russell has expressed his excitement to be involved in his ninth BBL season for the Melbourne Renegades in BBL 12.
However, in bad news for Renegades fans, the all-rounder will only be playing for the first four games of the season.
Despite this, the big-hitter has claimed that he will be able to make a big impact in his ten-day cameo.
"I always try to put myself in the firing line for whichever team I'm playing for," Russell told media on Monday.
"If I was here for the entire season, I wouldn't start off blocking. I would try to start off the season as healthy as possible.
"I'm definitely looking forward to giving the team a good head start and hopefully set them on their way."
Because of his small window of availability, the 34-year-old was overlooked in the inaugural BBL international draft.
However, when Englishman Liam Livingstone was selected in England's Test squad against Pakistan, Russell was quickly snagged by the Renegades.
He will play against the Thunder and Hurricanes as well as the Heat, who he'll play twice in his short burst down under.
The Jamaican will be replaced by New Zealander Martin Guptill after Christmas as the Renegades aim to move up the ladder in BBL|12 after finishing last in BBL|11.
Despite impressing with the ball as always, the big-hitter struggled with the bat in the T10 tournament in Abu Dhabi, averaging just 13 runs across the tournament.
As always, the Jamaican remains bullish on his talents.
"I never doubt myself. I know what I can do," Russell said.
"I didn't really get enough chance to bat in the T10 tournament recently but that don't take anything away from my skills and anything I can do.
"I'm always positive and I'm going to hit the ground running."
Russell is going into the season with a sense of optimism about the Renegades' squad after a disappointing year last year.
With Aaron Finch, Nic Maddinson and Peter Handscomb all toward the top of the batting order, Renegades coach David Saker will be hoping such experience can drag some of the younger players to the required level to be challenging for the title.
"The team that they have this year is a lot more (well-rounded)," Russell said.
"We have to make sure that we start off as well as possible. Once you start off well in any tournament you pave the way."
This will be Russell's second campaign with the Renegades after playing his first BBL season with them in 2014-15.
