Fuller leaves Gloucestershire for Middlesex

James Fuller has signed a three-year contract with Middlesex after turning down an offer to stay at Gloucestershire. Fuller, who played a key role in Gloucestershire's Royal London Cup victory, moves to Middlesex after five seasons in Bristol.

Although he was born in South Africa and raised in New Zealand, where he played for Otago, Fuller has a British passport and is England qualified. His time with Gloucestershire was interrupted by injuries but he took 15 wickets in their successful Royal London Cup campaign, including 2 for 34 in the final against Surrey at Lord's.

Able to move the ball at good pace, Fuller has performed best in limited-overs cricket, although he did concede 38 off a single over in Gloucestershire's 2012 FLt20 quarter-final. In first-class cricket, he took 89 wickets at 34.98 for the county, including a hat-trick against Worcestershire in 2013.

"Middlesex have been looking to sign a fast bowler with white-ball pedigree and in James I believe we have found a bowler that will add extra bite and quality to this area of our cricket," Middlesex's director of cricket, Angus Fraser, said.

"I have watched James bowl on numerous occasions and have been impressed with what I have seen. He is a fine athlete with a strong, easy action that allows him to bowl with good pace. He can also give the ball a good whack when batting. James is extremely ambitious and is the sort of character that fits what Middlesex are looking for."

"James highlighted the impact he can have on a game during this seasons Royal London Cup final at Lord's. His pace and skill really unsettled Surrey's top order and it played a major role in Gloucestershire successfully defending a modest total. James will also add a slightly different dimension to our County Championship resources too. I am confident that his game will develop further under the guidance of Middlesex's coaching staff and he will enjoy playing for the club."

Gloucestershire had announced earlier in the day that Fuller, who was believed to be on the radar of a number of counties, would not be signing another contract with the Division Two club.

Fuller said: "I'm really looking forward to playing at Lord's with Middlesex. Having won the final here recently with Gloucestershire I've got great memories of the place already and as the Home of Cricket I can't think of anywhere better to be playing my cricket.

"I'm looking forward to showing Middlesex supporters what I can bring with the white ball. I've worked really hard on my skills back at Gloucestershire with John Bracewell, Ian Harvey and Richard Dawson and have had plenty of success in the shorter formats, so I'm looking to build on that. I'm also looking forward to contributing with the red ball too and hope to get plenty of opportunities to show what I can do in the Championship."