'Bad boy' Ryder to finally see some cricket action courtesy Essex stint

English county cricket side Essex has reportedly signed New Zealand all-rounder Jesse Ryder as their overseas player for their domestic season despite his bad boy image.

Ryder reportedly made a comeback from the life-threatening injuries he suffered after being attacked outside Christchurch bas in early 2013 and being dropped by New Zealand Cricket for going drinking with his teammate Doug Bracewell in an Auckland bar on the eve of potential Test comeback against India.

Ryder's booze session with Bracewell in Auckland cost him a place in New Zealand's Twenty20 squad because of his wild character, Sport24, reported.

Now, Essex has reportedly played a huge gamble by signing Ryder, who is a big-hitting left-handed batsman, by signing him to feature for the team in all formats of cricket for the County Championship Division Two outfit, which starts from May 4.

Ryder's move to Essex is still subject to visa approval, but New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has signed a no-objection certificate for the cricketer.

Ryder's previous indiscretions reportedly include damaging a hand on the window of a Christchurch bar in 2008 and being dropped for drinking alcohol after being injured the following year.

However, the suspension Ryder served following a positive drug test shortly after he was attacked in 2012 had been limited to six months because the New Zealand Sports Tribunal accepted that the all-rounder had consumed an illegal substance unsuspectingly in a weight-reduction pill, the report added.