Haseeb Hameed joins Nottinghamshire after release by Lancashire

Hameed had previously spent the entirety of his career with Lancashire, but he has struggled for consistent runs since fracturing his finger during a Test series against India in 2016

Nottinghamshire have signed Haseeb Hameed on a two-year deal after his release by Lancashire.

The 22-year-old, who made two half-centuries during his three Test appearances to date – all of which came during a tour of India in 2016, has agreed a contract through to the end of the 2021 season.

Hameed had previously spent the entirety of his career with Lancashire but has struggled for consistent runs since fracturing a finger during the series against India.

He had impressed until that point and there was some feeling that England had found the opening batsman they had been seeking.

Since then, however, Hameed has failed to repeat the form that initially secured him an England berth, highlighted by an average of less than 10 in 17 innings in the 2018 County Championship.

His last appearance in first-class cricket came in July, despite ending a run of nearly three years without a first-class century in April.

“I’m very excited to be joining Nottinghamshire and playing my cricket at Trent Bridge,” he said of his move.

“I’ve enjoyed myself every time I’ve played at this great venue and hope to add to some good memories there.

“This is a new chapter in both my life and career and I’m full of excitement to start working with my new teammates and helping get Notts back up to Division One where they belong.

“I want to thank Lancashire for the support they’ve provided over the years and to my teammates, whom I’ve shared a dressing room with.

“A special mention to Mick Newell and Peter Moores at Notts for believing in me. I can’t wait to get started.”

^{Hameed made 82 in the second innings of his Test debut}

Despite his recent difficulties, Hameed has made almost 3,000 runs in first-class cricket to date, becoming the fifth-youngest player in history to record 1,000 runs in a County Championship season in the process when he did so in 2016.

After his Lancashire departure was announced, there was interest from several counties, including Worcestershire. He was also viewed by Yorkshire as a potential alternative to Dawid Malan, but any move was ruled out after the Middlesex man moved to Headingley.

“There’s no doubting Haseeb’s talent,” head coach Peter Moores added.

“It doesn’t get much tougher than Test cricket in India and he proved over there, at a very young age, that he has all the skill, temperament and patience to succeed at the highest level.

“He’s enjoyed some more difficult times since then, and that’s going to happen with young players, but the ones that are destined for great things bounce back and move their games on again.

“We believe that’s what’s going to happen with Haseeb and it’s great news for Notts that we can be the ones to benefit from that.

“We’ve got exciting stroke players in our red-ball team, but it’s really important that we find a way to bat longer.

“Haseeb’s approach is patient, methodical and based on crease occupation. They’re old-fashioned virtues in many ways, but they’re completely relevant to the modern-day game and exactly what we need to help us get better.”

He has not been selected by a Hundred team, while Nottinghamshire's white-ball strength - he joins a list of top-order options including Alex Hales, Chris Nash, Ben Duckett, Joe Clarke and Ben Slater - could well see Hameed's primary focus restricted to red-ball cricket.

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