David Lloyd, Samit Patel to lead Derbyshire's Club in County Championship 2024

NEW DELHI: English batting allrounder David Lloyd to lead Derbyshire's club in the upcoming County Championship. Meanwhile, England's Samit Patel was named the side's white-ball cricket.

Lloyd led the Glamorgan side in the 2022 and 2023 seasons of the County Championship and joined Derbyshire last summer.

On the other hand, Derby signed Patel recently. The 39-year-old signed for Derby after spending two decades with Nottinghamshire, where he clinched six trophies including four in white-ball cricket.

Patel also holds the milestone for most Vitality Blast appearances after taking part in 232 matches.

"I'm delighted to be able to confirm David and Samit as our captains for the 2024 season, both have great experience and have settled into the group nicely," Derbyshire's head of cricket Mickey Arthur said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

"David will bring a real aggression to our red-ball game and I think our members and supporters are going to really enjoy our cricket in the County Championship this season. Samit is one of the most decorated players in county cricket and his desire to win is infectious. He has a very good cricket brain, particularly in the white-ball game, and knows what it takes to win trophies, that will be key for the Vitality Blast this season," Arthur added.

"Over the winter, our goal has been to recruit proven winners, to compliment the quality we already had within the squad to make us a competitive unit across all formats. I'm looking forward to working with our captains through the season as we challenge in 2024," he further added.

Lloyd's captaincy debut for the Derby side will come against Gloucestershire on April 5. Meanwhile, Patel will be skipper against Northants in their Vitality Blast on May 30.

"It's a real honour for me to be named captain of our red-ball side, we have a special group of players, coaching staff and people around the club, this is an exciting opportunity I couldn't turn down. We've got a lot of plans in place and I think it's going to be a really good season for our members and supporters," Lloyd said.

"I'm very honoured and proud to lead the white-ball side. I am looking forward to working with the great squad we have assembled. The brand of cricket we want to play hopefully attracts the fans to come and support us they play a massive role if we are to win. We will definitely need them throughout the year. It's a great challenge for me and I can't wait for the Vitality Blast to start," Patel added.