Rhodes appointed Worcestershire's director of cricket

Worcestershire's head coach Steve Rhodes has been appointed the county's director of cricket, while Vikram Solanki has been retained as captain.

Rhodes, who took over as head coach from Tom Moody when he became Sri Lanka's coach in June, will start his new post with immediate effect. The role was previously also filled by Moody.

Rhodes, who played 391 first-class matches for Worcestershire in a 20-year career and made 11 Test appearances for England behind the stumps, said: "I feel proud to continue my association with Worcestershire as director of cricket and relish the challenges we have in store for us in 2006. I am full of optimism for not only next year but many years to come."

Rhodes' grounds of optimism could be tested. They were relegated from the National League Division One and finished sixth in the bottom tier of the County Championship last summer. However, they have made two astute signings for next season, bringing in Aussie duo Phil Jaques and Nathan Bracken.