Head coach Matt Walker has extended his contract with Kent until the end of the 2022 season.

The amiable 46-year-old has played a major role in Kent’s upturn in fortunes in recent seasons.

The county won promotion to Division 1 of the County Championship and reached the One-Day Cup final two years ago while, in a curtailed season, this summer they still have the chance of T20 Blast glory having also finished second in their Bob Willis Trophy group.

Walker said: “We sat down at the end of last year and started to talk about it but then lockdown happened and nothing happened!

“I’m hugely pleased that I’ve got another two years here – I love it.

“I love my job and this group of players and it’s going to be exciting to watch the team for the next couple of years.

“The job now is to try and win something. We’re not a big hitter in terms of not being a Test ground but I’m proud that we do punch above our weight.

“We’ve given opportunities to young players and have been rewarded, and we’ve provided international players – not just Zak Crawley, Joe Denly and Sam Billings, but Matt Milnes and Ollie Robinson underneath that with the Lions last winter.

“It feels like we are doing something right. It’s a great place to be and people look at Kent around the country as a dangerous side now when they play us.”

Walker, who still holds the record for the highest score by a Kent player at the St Lawrence ground – 275 not out against Somerset in 1996 - spent 16 years at the club as a player.

The Gravesend-born left-hander scored more than 12,000 first-class runs and was part of the club’s Sunday League winning teams in 1995 and 2001 as well as the Twenty20 Cup in 2007.

After ending his career with Essex, Walker returned to Kent as assistant coach in 2014 before taking on the head coach role in 2017. It’s no surprise that Kent have made great strides forward under his leadership.

Walker also praised the staff around him – Simon Cook and Mike Yardy joined as bowling and batting coach in the last year and Min Patel took on the role of head of talent pathway.

“I look at is as a collective,” added Walker. “It’s a new coaching staff with Simon and Mike, then you’ve got Min Patel and Mark Dekker as well as Rob Chave, our strength and conditioning coach.

“It’s a fresh-looking group and then we’ve got a quality physio department under Nimmo Reid and Dan George.

“We’ve got a great team. It’s taken a bit of time to get the right people in the right place at the right time but I think we’ve got there.”

Kent director of cricket Paul Downton said: “I am delighted that Walks has extended his term as head coach.

“Since he was appointed in 2017, Matt has created an environment where young players have thrived and overall standards have been raised both on and off the field. His recent work with the England men’s squad shows how well thought-of he is as a coach.

“With Simon Cook and Mike Yardy in place, our members and supporters can be confident that the club is in good hands as Walks leads the coaching team into the next 150 years of the club’s history.”

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