Luke Wells

Luke Wells reinvigorated his career at Lancashire after his lifelong association with Sussex came to an unsatisfactory end. He made the move to Manchester after failing to make a first-team appearance in the Covid-shortened 2020 season and thrived at his new club: once typecast as a red-ball blocker, he reinvented himself as an aggressive, powerful player across formats, and started to win franchise deals.

Wells has a strong Sussex pedigree: born in Eastbourne, he is the son of Alan, who won a single Test cap for England, and nephew of Colin, another Sussex regular. He played for the club on summer contracts while studying at Loughborough University, and repealed a capacity for long innings when he took 174 off Yorkshire at Hove in 2011. A maiden double-century followed two years later, against Surrey at the age of 22.

He remained a Sussex regular throughout his 20s, with highlights including an innings of 258 against Durham - including 34 runs off one over - and he hit eight Championship hundreds across the 2016 and 2017 seasons. But limited-overs appearances were, at best, sporadic, and after two quiet years in 2018 and 2019, he found himself left out altogether when Sussex picked a young team for the Bob Willis Trophy in 2020.

Several counties were interested when he became available but he chose Lancashire, averaging 40 in his first Championship season and more than 50 in his second. As he developed his Rashid Khan-inspired legspin, he became a regular in their T20 side and by the end of 2024, could count Welsh Fire, Sharjah Warriors and Lahore Qalandars among the other short-form sides he had represented.
ESPNcricinfo staff