White believes 'dangerous' Heldreich has bright multi-format future for Northants

The left-arm wrist spinner has this week put pen to paper on a new two-year contract at the County Ground, having emerged as a key member of the Steelbacks' Vitality Blast line-up in 2022.

Having been picked up from minor counties cricket and being handed his Blast debut by David Ripley at Durham in June last year, head coach John Sadler put full faith in the 21-year-old in the 20-over game in the summer.

Heldreich started 12 of the Steelbacks' 14 North Group games, and finished third in the club's wicket-taking charts, snaring 14 victims at at an average of 25.07 and an economy rate of 9.48 runs per over.

His strike-rate saw him claim a wicket every 16 balls, and White believes Heldreich is a player who is only going to improve and can blossom into a real asset for Northants - and not just in T20 cricket.

The Ipswich-born bowler has already played five One Day Cup matches for the Steelbacks, but has yet to make his debut in the four-day game, but White feels he has the potential to be a handful in any format.

“He’s a strike bowler and that’s why he excels in T20 cricket because he’s so dangerous," said White, who is the club's all-time leading wicket-taker in the shortest format of county cricket.

“It will be great to see his progression in the next year or two and hopefully he can develop into playing 50 over and red ball cricket for Northamptonshire too.”

White is still very much a key player in the Steelbacks' T20 team, but he combines that with being the head coach of the second team, and also being the club's spibn bowling coach.

That means he has worked a lot of with Heldreich, and he has been impressed by the player's ability and attitude.

“We’ve been working together for a few years already and we’ve built up a really good relationship," said White.

“He loves bowling and I think he’s got a great attitude towards the game.

"He’s keen to keep working and improving so I’m really glad that that relationship will continue.”