Essex sign up Tamim for Blast spell

Essex have signed Tamim Iqbal, the Bangladesh opener, for an eight-game spell in the NatWest T20 Blast. Tamim joins Mohammad Amir as one of Essex's two overseas players and will be available to play against Kent at Beckenham on Sunday.

"Tamim has shown how good a player he is in the recent Champions Trophy competition," Essex's head coach, Chris Silverwood, said. "As a batsman he is capable of being destructive and that is reflected in his career strike rate.

"We identified the opening berth as an area we wanted to strengthen and we are thrilled to get a player of Tamim's calibre into the club. He will bolster the side for eight games and we look forward to his arrival."

Tamim was the third-highest run-scorer at the Champions Trophy, with 293 at 73.25, as Bangladesh made it to the semi-finals of a global tournament for the first time. In T20 cricket, he averages 30.29 with a strike rate of 118.36.

He said: "I am really looking forward to linking up with my Essex team mates for the upcoming NatWest T20 Blast.

"I have played plenty of cricket with and against the likes of Ravi Bopara, Ryan ten Doeschate and Ashar Zaidi, so I'm sure it will be an environment I will settle into quickly. I always enjoy playing cricket in England and hope to help Essex make a big impact in the competition."