Mohammad Ali joins Nottinghamshire for business end of 2026

Pakistan seamer Mohammad Ali will join Nottinghamshire on a short-term, multi-format deal for the final two months of the 2026 English domestic season.

Ali, 33, is set to arrive at the start of August, and will be eligible for the Rothesay County Championship and the Metro Bank One Day Cup.

With 340 career wickets - eight of those at international level - Ali made the most recent of his eight appearances for Pakistan during his ODI debut in New Zealand last March. In all, he has played four Tests and three T20Is in addition to that solitary ODI.

"I have always wanted to play county cricket and get experience of English conditions, so I am excited to have that chance," Ali said. "Trent Bridge is a really famous ground around the world, so I am really looking forward to playing there and helping Nottinghamshire to achieve success. Being able to play red-ball and white-ball cricket is exciting, and I am looking forward to helping the team at an important time in the season."

Ali is already known to the Trent Bridge coaching staff, having formed an integral part of the Central Punjab side coached by Paul Franks during the 2022-23 Pakistani domestic campaign. In that season's Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan's domestic First-Class competition, Ali finished as the fifth-highest wicket-taker overall with 24 at 25.54 apiece. He also collected six wickets in five matches, including 2 for 31 in the final, as Central Punjab lifted the domestic 50-over trophy, also under Franks' guidance.

Franks, Nottinghamshire's assistant head coach, said: "It was Mohammad's character and personality that really hit home for me when I coached him while in Pakistan. That's what's kept him on our radar ever since, and I've kept a really strong relationship with him, from a distance.

"We speak regularly, and we've explored other opportunities to bring him to the club in the past, but this one felt like it was at a really good time for him and for us. He's a real pleasure to coach."

Meanwhile, 33-year-old wicketkeeper-batter Sam Whiteman has joined Yorkshire on a three-year all-format deal from Western Australia.

Born in Doncaster, Whiteman emigrated to Australia aged three and went on to become a prolific-run scorer in the Sheffield Shield.

In 119 first class-games to date he has scored 6,930 runs, including 17 centuries, and he captained Western Australia to the Shield title in 2023 and 2024, having played an integral role in their 2022 triumph. He has also won the BBL title three times with Perth Scorchers.

A stint with Northamptonshire in 2023 was fruitful when he averaged above 37 and scored two centuries along with three fifties. As a British passport holder, he will represent Yorkshire as a local domestic player.