Matt Parkinson bids to reignite career with switch to Kent: "I believe my best years are ahead of me"

The leg-spinner will leave Lancashire, where he has struggled for gametime over the past year. He has signed a deal which will run until the end of the 2026 summer

Matt Parkinson will attempt to breathe life into his career at Kent after agreeing a three-year contract with the county.

The leg-spinner will leave Lancashire, where he has struggled for gametime over the past year.

The England international has already spent time out on loan at Durham in 2023, and his availability - his Lancashire contract expires at the end of this season - sparked interest from several counties including Yorkshire.

But it is Kent who have got their man, securing Parkinson on a deal which will run until the end of the 2026 summer.

^{Matt Parkinson is swapping Lancashire for Kent [Getty Images]}

He will formally make the switch to Canterbury on a permanent basis in November.

"The time is right for me to embrace a new challenge and environment," he said.

"I'm proud of my record in the game so far and I believe my best years as a leg-spin bowler are ahead of me. 

"I promise my new teammates and the Kent supporters that I will throw myself into this new challenge and I can’t wait to get down to Canterbury to get started."

^{Parkinson has one England Test cap [Getty Images]}

Lancashire supporters will be disappointed to see Parkinson leave, given his immense promise three or four years ago. The spinner quickly established a reputation for extracting turn, despite some criticism of his relatively loopy style and low pace, and he fought his way into the England white-ball squad in 2019.

An international debut followed in a T20 against New Zealand in late 2019, while he made his Test debut in 2022 at Lord's against the same opposition - having been introduced to the game as a concussion substitute for Jack Leach. 

Lancashire's director of cricket performance, Mark Chilton, said of Parkinson's departure: "Matt has found first-team opportunities limited this season and we respect the decision that he has made to move on at the end of his contract, in order to seek a new challenge elsewhere."