Smith seeks success in all formats after signing contract extension
21 January 2016
Gloucestershire spinner Tom Smith hopes to replicate his one-day success in the County Championship after agreeing a new two-year contract extension at the club.
The 28-year-old left armer – who has signed until 2018 - was the leading wicket-taker in the country after the group stages of last year’s NatWest T20 Blast and played a major part in his side’s Royal London Cup win.
He said: “I’ve been very consistent for the club in the white ball forms since I arrived. One of my main focuses is to get back into the four-day side and really contribute there.
“I’m extremely pleased and excited to have signed a new contract. The next three seasons are big ones for this club, building on the Royal London One-Day Cup win. It is a very young group of players and we are all keen for further success.”
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Smith started his career at his home county of Sussex and played for Surrey and Middlesex before moving to Gloucestershire in 2013 following a successful loan spell.
He won a place in the hearts of Gloucestershire fans while still on loan when he marked the official opening of the Bristol Pavilion with a hat-trick against local rivals Somerset in the Yorkshire Bank 40 over competition.
Smith repeated the feat at home to Essex in last year’s NatWest Blast where he dismissed Ryan Ten Doeschate, Graham Napier and David Masters in successive deliveries, finishing with figures of 5-39. He went on to take 23 wickets at 13.13 as the club narrowly missed out on reaching the Blast quarter finals.
Arguably his finest moment in a Gloucestershire shirt came in last year’s Royal London One-Day Cup final win over Surrey at Lord’s.
Coming in at 108-5 he scored 20 and put on his side’s highest partnership of the match (52) with Geraint Jones before taking 2-42 with the ball.
Smith’s contract extension comes hot on the heels of wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick committing his future to the club until 2018. With the arrival of Chris Liddle and Andrew Tye and Michael Klinger and Benny Howell signing new contracts last summer, Smith says the future is looking bright for the squad.
He said: “We are a very tight-knit bunch, we all in it together, we all want to stay together and bring success to the club.
“The more we can keep players and also attract players from other counties – Chris Liddle is a great signing, getting Andrew Tye in who’s now been called up for Australia- it just shows that getting a few wins on the board does help bring in players. The more we win, the more exciting it is and the easier it is for Richard Dawson and Will Brown to bring players in.”
Head coach Richard Dawson said he was delighted to Smith had signed.
He said: “It is great to have him extend his contract. He has been a mainstay of the one-day and T20 sides since coming to Gloucestershire and he was a very influential player for us in white ball cricket last year.
“He is also a valued member of the changing room and I am sure he will continue to contribute across all three formats of cricket over the next few years.
“We want to build on the success we had last season. Keeping the squad together is crucial part of that so to have Tom and Gareth Roderick both extend their contracts is great news for the club.”
