Akhil Patel signs-two year contract

Akhil Patel, the left-hand batsman, has signed a two-year full-time contract with Nottinghamshire that will keep him with the county till 2011. Patel, 19, made his County Championship debut this season and played four Pro40 matches.

"My aim for next season is to play more first class cricket and initially that means trying to secure a place in the one day side," he said. "I felt a lot of pressure when I made my first appearance for Notts but I benefited from some exposure towards the end of the season and hopefully that has put me in good stead for the new campaign."

Patel is confident he does not want to be in the shadow of his elder brother Samit Patel, who played limited-overs cricket for England. "I've had some good advice from Samit and experienced pros like Ali Brown and Mark Ealham and I take that on board but I want to establish myself by playing consistently good cricket," he said. "I'm very happy at Notts and I like the setup so I have to work on my game and make progress over the next two years."

Patel has begun his rehabilitation following keyhole surgery on a niggling knee injury last week and expects to be fully fit in time for 2010.

Mick Newell, Nottinghamshire's director of cricket, said: "Akhil has developed his game quicker than we anticipated over the past 12 months and he has the potential to become an established member of our team. He fits the bill because he's a talented, young cricketer who works very hard on his game."