South Australia director of cricket Jamie Cox is banking on Adil Rashid to fill the void left by powerhouse Shahid Afridi next month.

The Redbacks have signed Yorkshire’s Bradford-born star as their second overseas player for the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash competition.

Like England’s equivalent event, each state is allowed two foreign imports.

The Adelaide-based state have also secured destructive West Indian Kieron Pollard for a second successive campaign.

But they were unable to confirm the return of Afridi due to international commitments, and that is where Rashid, 22, comes in.

When asked whether he could compare Rashid to Afridi, Cox responded: “I think that’s unfair.”

But the former Australian national selector said: “Shahid had a wonderful impact for us last year – and we’ve targeted a similar skill set.

“Adil’s a young kid who’s had some good international exposure already. I know he’s very highly regarded. He’s got some fantastic numbers for a young spinner.

“For us, while we know Shahid leaves a hole, we think we’ve secured some pretty good support.”

Rashid’s potential has been spoken about extensively but this is when we will get the best idea of how he is developing.

Rashid, who was recently selected for the England Lions tour of the West Indies, will miss a portion of that trip to enable him to compete Down Under until February 5.

Cox added: “The English are lending him to us. He’s foregoing a couple of Lions commitments, so they obviously see it as a big deal. We’re very excited about it.”

So should all connected with Yorkshire, for this will be one of the most telling few weeks in this young player’s career.

Rashid will make his SA debut against New South Wales on January 4.