Ajantha Mendis

ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) - Sri Lanka spin bowler Ajantha Mendis will play for South Australia in the domestic Twenty20 cricket competition later this year.

Mendis joins compatriot Lasith Malinga, who was recently recruited by Tasmania, West Indians Dwayne Bravo (Victoria) and Chris Gayle (Western Australia) and Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi (New South Wales) among overseas stars signed to the tournament.

Mendis’ unusual bowling style has confounded many of the world’s best batsman and he had been targeted by South Australia as a spin bowler capable of changing the course of a match, the province’s High Performance Manager Jamie Cox said.

"It was proven in the world T20 that spin bowling has a massive part to play, and Ajantha was always our No. 1 target," Cox said. "The shorter the game, the more important it is to have a point of difference and he certainly provides that."

State teams competing in the Australian T20 league are allowed two imported players and Cox said South Australia would likely target one of the former Australian players who have recently played in the Indian Premier League.