Brent returns to Burridge for 2003

Zimbabwe international cricketer Gary Brent has answered an SOS from Burridge to help the Fareham West club regain their place in the ECB Southern Electric Premier League's top flight this summer.

The village club was relegated from Premier Division 1 at the end of last season and are banking on Brent's experience to help them regain their lost status.

Brent, 27, will begin his fourth season at Burridge in late April as a fully fledged Zimbabwean international, having been capped four times and played 39 ODIs for his country since 1996.

"I've had three marvellous seasons at Burridge in the late 1990s, making a lot of great friends, most of whom have continued to keep in touch," said Brent from his Harare home this week.

"I'm delighted to be coming back again and hopefully I'll be more of an asset to the club now I've got a fair amount of international experience."

Brent, whose father's tobacco farm on the northern outskirts of Harare was recently seized under President Robert Mugabe's land reform programme, initially helped Burridge win promotion into the Southern League.

He returned to play again for the club in the following two seasons before cementing a place in Zimbabwe's international squads.

Brent has played three Test matches against Sri Lanka - claiming the impressive scalps of Russel Arnold, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara - and another against Bangladesh.

He has taken seven Test Match wickets and claimed 45 victims in ODIs, Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting and Marvin Atapattu among them.

Brent's last ODI was against Pakistan in November, but he failed to make the Zimbabwe side for either the ICC Trophy in Sri Lanka or the current World Cup.

Veteran Roger Cawte, who takes over the Burridge captaincy from the departed Paul Ancell, knows that Brent will be a terrific acquisition for the club.

"Gary will have a tremendous, stimulating influence at the club, particularly when he bats.

"He's primarily a seam bowler, but Gary's a very talented batsman, who will score his runs very quickly - and that will be a terrific asset.

"The colts, particularly, will know who he is and can also learn an enormous amount from him," he said.

Cawte, who reckons he will be the oldest player, let alone captain, in Premier Division 2 this summer, will be keeping a watchful eye in the coming weeks to see if Brent nudges the Zimbabwe selectors for a potential England tour place.

"Zimbabwe are due here for some Test and International Matches, and that could affect Gary's situation.

"But, as things stand, he's confirmed he's coming - and that's great news for Burridge cricket," Cawte added.

Burridge are holding pre-season practice nets at the Hampshire Rose Bowl on Tuesday evenings, 7pm.