Brown seals Notts switch

7 January 2009

Ali Brown claims his move to Nottinghamshire is motivated by a desire to win trophies

Nottinghamshire have completed the signing of former Surrey and England batsman Ali Brown.

The 38-year-old, who spent 21 years as one of the key members of the Surrey batting order, has put pen to paper on a two-year deal at Trent Bridge.

He featured heavily in the first half of the 2008 season, but did not play after June and was not offered a new contract at the end of the campaign.

“Notts are primed to challenge for the championship and I want to hit the ground running and help the team to push for honours,” said Brown, who was relegated from the First Division with Surrey last year.

“For me, the buzz of playing cricket comes from winning competitions and I feel that I’ve got two more years to win things at this level.

“I’ve always been confident in my ability, I’m feeling fit and I want to play for Notts in all forms of the game.”

Brown played 16 one-day internationals for England between 1996 and 2001, but is probably best remembered for his record 268 off 160 balls for Surrey in a C&G Trophy match against Glamorgan in 2002. It remains the highest individual score in a 50-over match.

With Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad centrally contracted by the ECB, and Samit Patel and Graeme Swann in possession of incremental contracts and expected to be on England duty this summer, Notts are keen to add depth to their squad.

Director of cricket Mick Newell said: “Ali has a lot to offer as a cricketer but he’s also an experienced head who will act as a role model to younger players.

“He’s an exciting one-day player at the top of the order and he can play an important role for us over the next two years.”