Jon Batty announces retirement

Jon Batty, the Gloucestershire and former Surrey wicketkeeper, has announced his retirement from professional cricket.

Batty, 38, played his last game against Leicestershire in the final round of the County Championship matches to end three years with Gloucestershire having played the majority of his career at Surrey. His final season was not overly productive with 256 runs in eight Championship matches at 28.44.

"It's with great sadness that the moment has come for me to call time on my career," Batty said. "I've had an amazing 18 years playing first-class cricket and living the dream. My mind is full of wonderful memories that will last forever.

"I'd like to thank Gloucestershire for the last three years. I hope I've been a positive influence and helped the side develop as they build towards a return to the top flight in the future. Finally, a huge thank you to everyone who has helped and supported me, both on and off the field, over the years."

Gloucestershire's director of cricket John Bracewell said: "Jon has been a model professional in his time with us. His positive attitude on and off the field has been tremendous and he can leave the game with his head held high. He is the consummate team player."

Batty made his first-class debut in 1994 and ends with 9673 runs at 31.50 including 20 hundreds along with 2992 runs in one-day cricket and 656 in Twenty20. With the gloves to claimed more than 650 dismissals in the first-class game.