Wests captain James King said the Rosellas would miss Randwick-bound Puru Gaur at the top of the batting order this season but was confident the club had enough depth to fill the void in the first XI.
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In his one and only summer at Harker Oval, Gaur made 635 runs in all Newcastle District Cricket Association competitions for 2019-20 before the coronavirus crisis saw play stopped on the verge of the finals series.
The right-hander averaged 33.42 across the three formats (two-day, one-day and T20), had a highest score of 115 and reached 52 against Hamilton-Wickham in the Tom Locker Cup decider on November 24.
"It has always been his [Gaur] goal to play at a higher level so we wish him the best of luck. He's definitely good enough to have a crack in Sydney," King said. "We will miss his consistency at the top of the order but feel we have the depth to cover the loss."
The 20-year-old, who continues to study law at the University of Newcastle, has now relocated to Surrey Hills and begins training with Sydney's defending premiers this weekend.
"I hope to give my best there," Gaur said. "The club [Randwick] has good players to learn from like David Warner and Jason Sangha. I want to play higher cricket and if I score runs I could be a chance to play state."
Gaur, who arrived in Australia during 2019, said it had been a "great experience" playing for Wests.
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