32-year-old left-arm spinner, Danny Briggs, has put pen to paper on a new two-year contract with the Warwickshire Bears. The former Hampshire and Sussex spinner has been part of the Bears’ furniture since the start of the 2021 season, when he left Sussex for the Midlands after a four-year spell on the south coast.
His new deal runs until the end of the 2025 season. Briggs remains the number-one wicket taker in the history of English T20 cricket. He has 219 wickets to his name thus far. During the 2023 T20 season, he registered another 14 scalps. His versatile slow left-arm deliveries have also proven invaluable in The Hundred, appearing for the Southern Brave and the Oval Invincibles, winning last year’s final with the Invincibles. The Invincibles are currently the favourites to win The Hundred in 2024, priced at 11/2 with SkyBet’s ‘Price Boost’ ramping up the odds from 9/2. This is one of several SkyBet initiatives across its sports betting markets. It’s also highly regards of its promotions for first-time users, ranking as one of the three most recommended Oddschecker free bets in the UK market.
Briggs has seen it all at County level
Briggs’ form in the short format of the game has also earned him seven T20 caps and one one-day international appearance for the England’s national side. He’s also someone with a winning mentality, having won the T20 Blast on two occasions with Hampshire in 2010 and 2012.
From a Bears’ perspective, Briggs enjoyed a winning start to life in a Warwickshire kit. In 2021, he helped the team to lift the County Championship for the first time since 2012, securing their eighth County Championship in the team’s 142-year history.
Briggs played a huge role in Warwickshire’s final win over Lancashire to lift the Bob Willis Trophy by an innings and 199 runs at Lord’s. Warwickshire plundered 518 runs in their first innings and bowled out Lancashire for just 78 in their first innings after a Craig Miles-inspired bowling spell, yielding a five-wicket haul.
With Lancashire following-on, Briggs took centre stage in the second innings, taking three wickets for 58 runs in a 19-over spell.
A look at the comings and goings for Warwickshire ahead of the 2024 season
It’s already been well-documented about the club’s ability to secure the signature of Pakistan bowler, Hassan Ali, as an overseas player until the end of July. In terms of outgoings, Ethan Brookes and Henry Brookes have been allowed to depart for Worcestershire and Middlesex respectively. Meanwhile George Garrett and Manraj Johal have also left Edgbaston, with Garrett opting to ply his trade with Kent.
Aside from Briggs’ new contract, there’s been two new faces to sign on the dotted line for Warwickshire during the off-season. Sussex’s George Garton was the first arrival, penning a three-year contract in November. Garton, an England international fast bowler, had been part of the Sussex setup from a tender age.
The signing has been made primarily with the Bears’ Vitality Blast campaign in mind. His left-arm fast bowling has the potential to be destructive and he has plenty of experience in franchise cricket, having played in the Indian Premier League, the Australian Big Bash League, as well as the South African 20 and the Abu Dhabi T10. The club will also have the freedom to pitch him into red ball County cricket whenever they see fit too.
Veteran bowler, Richard Gleeson, has also sealed a short-term contract with the Bears exclusively for their Vitality Blast group stage fixtures – as well as a potential return in September should they qualify for the knockout stage.
Gleeson, now aged 36, is a seasoned pro with huge experience in high-profile matches in the short form of the sport. He’s appeared six times for England’s T20 side, ironically making his debut at Edgbaston in 2022 when he bagged the coveted wickets of Sharma and Kohli in a lively four-ball period.
Warwickshire weren’t far away from last season’s County Championship winners, Surrey, with only a couple of wins proving the ultimate difference. It remains to be seen whether their latest recruits can tip the balance in their favour in 2024.
