Worcestershire Head Coach Alan Richardson believes opening batter Ed Pollock is going to “get better and better”, and he is delighted to have secured “a match-winner in all formats” for the next three years after he signed a new contract.
Pollock had one year left of his current deal but was delighted to commit to staying at New Road until at least the end of the 2025 season.
He made his breakthrough in red-ball cricket after joining Worcestershire last season and scored two centuries, including a superb match-winning effort against Middlesex, and played in 13 of the 14 games in the LV=Insurance County Championship.
He endured a challenging season in the Vitality Blast but has shown on many occasions what he is capable of in T20 cricket when with Warwickshire.
Richardson said: “There is still so much more to come from Ed, and that is what is really exciting for me.
“By his own standards, in white ball cricket, he has not been as successful as he would have liked but we know that there is a match-winner in there for us.
“To have someone, who can have that effect in your squad, is invaluable, someone who can win you a game of cricket.
“We saw that in red-ball cricket, so someone who can win you games of cricket in both formats is a big asset. I think he is just going to get better and better. I genuinely believe that.
“You don’t always see that with someone of Ed’s age – but the ceiling with Ed is enormous still.
“That is something that should really excite everyone, and I think there is still a lot more to come from Ed.”
Richardson says Pollock demonstrated his ability to mix aggression with defence in four-day cricket as he became used to playing that form of cricket.
He said: “It has been a real passion of his to play red-ball cricket, and it was a bit of a leap into the unknown for him.
“But we saw what he was capable of, and some of the innings he played were fantastic, and all Worcestershire members should long remember the one at Middlesex.
“His innings at Leicester, in a game we should have won, was a huge part of that, and at Sussex, we saw that slightly different balance and a shift in what Ed can do when scoring 98.
“He has proven he can adapt. He can play at different tempos, which is just showing the maturity he has as well.
“For him, we’ve got someone where that ceiling is huge, and we are looking forward to seeing how he develops.”
