Vaughn van Jaarsveld leaves Highveld Lions

Vaughn van Jaarsveld's contract with the Highveld Lions has come to an immediate end. The batsman, who played two one-day internationals and three T20s for South Africa, has joined the Dolphins franchise.

Van Jaarsveld's contract with the Lions ran until the end of April 2011. He was initially only due to join up with the Durban-based franchise at the beginning of the 2011/12 season, but signed for them without informing the Lions.

According to an IOL report from last week, Lions' coach Dave Nosworthy only discovered van Jaarsveld's intent to leave the franchise during the Lions SuperSport Series match against the Dolphins, while talking to his Dolphins' counterpart, Graham Ford.

Van Jaarsveld was cut from the Lions' MTN40 squad while acting CEO Jacques Faul was in talks with Dolphins' CEO Jesse Chellan and the South African Cricketers Association over the deal. The parties came to a decision to release van Jaarsveld to the Dolphins immediately.

"It is important for us that Vaughn plays cricket and is available to play for South Africa, if selected. We, however, have to provide opportunities to many talented players and thus it makes more sense to release him immediately," Faul said.

"He will add significant ball-striking ability to our batting unit, for both the MTN40 and Standard Bank Pro 20 competitions," said Chellan. "At 25, Vaughn is entering his prime as a batter and we look forward to his contribution on and off the field."

The left-hander has been involved in contract clashes with the Lions before. In 2008, he signed for Warwickshire, claiming he wanted to qualify for England. He was still a contracted Lions player and the signing was considered an infringement on that contract.

Chellan confirmed that van Jaarsveld will be available for the Dolphins MTN40 match against the Titans in Centurion on Friday.