Graeme van Buuren named as new County Championship captain at Gloucestershire

The South African allrounder, who is entering his seventh season with the county, will also skipper in the Royal London Cup

Graeme van Buuren will captain Gloucestershire in the LV= Insurance County Championship and Royal London Cup this season, replacing Chris Dent in the role.

The move is the first major decision made by new head coach Dale Benkenstein since he began work at Bristol in late February, with the county now on a pre-season tour of Dubai following a club-wide team-building trip to Newquay.

It also marks the end of a difficult period for van Buuren, who missed large chunks of last season due to Home Office delays in his application for indefinite leave to remain, which has now been sorted.

The South African allrounder, who first joined Gloucestershire ahead of the 2016 campaign after impressing on trial following a summer's club cricket in Lancashire, was able to play as an overseas player in 2021 because of the bureaucracy but was restricted alternative signings from abroad.

"I am humbled to take over as captain, I am really excited for the opportunity and am looking forward to working with the team in both competitions," said van Buuren.

"There is a positive vibe around the side with all of the new additions and we can all feel the positive changes that have been made. The squad have put in a lot of effort over the winter and we are looking forward to the pre-season tour in Dubai and will be hoping to build on the momentum from last season."

^{Jack Taylor will continue as Gloucestershire's captain in the T20 Blast (Michael Steele/Getty Images)}

Benkenstein added: "I haven't been in the country for that long, so it has been such a positive to see there's quite a few guys who could take over the captaincy; senior players who have clear leadership skills, and that's a really healthy sign in a club. For that reason, it wasn't a straightforward decision, but in Graeme we have selected a man for which captaincy comes at the right time of his career.

"The next four or five seasons will be his best and he has the respect of all the players. It is important that the coach-captain relationship is strong, and I feel I will work very well with Graeme. In people like David Payne, Chris Dent, Ryan Higgins and James Bracey, he's got senior players who will provide excellent support."

Following Dent's resignation last September, Bracey – who was named Gloucestershire's vice-captain ahead of last summer – skippered against Durham in the final round of County Championship matches in 2021.

Jack Taylor, who led the county to T20 Blast Finals Day in 2020, will continue as T20 captain.