Northants swoop to sign Leicestershire all-rounder Tom Taylor

The 25-year-old has initially signed on loan with the County, and is available for selection for Friday's trip to Somerset in the Vitality T20 Blast.

Taylor was made available this week after turning down a 'very good' contract offer with the Foxes.

“I’m extremely excited about joining up with Northamptonshire.” said Taylor, who has previously worked with Northants assistant coach John Sadler at Derbyshire and Leicestershire.

“I can’t wait to get going now and focus on helping them win games and trophies over the coming years.”

Originally from Stoke-on-Trent, Taylor has 50 professional appearances under his belt and can play in all three formats of the game.

“Tom’s a very good all-round cricketer, he’s got high potential with a brilliant attitude and he’s a great acquisition for our squad.” said Sadler.

“I saw him as a real young lad out of the Academy at Derby and he burst onto the scene with huge potential but quite raw.

"For the age he’s at now, he’s got a real good perspective and a good view of the game and he’s going to keep getting better and better.”

The majority of Taylor’s professional experience comes in red-ball cricket, having taken nearly 100 wickets and scored just shy of 1,000 runs in his 33 appearances.

He also boasts a batting average of 48.4 in List A cricket and Sadler believes he adds value in any situation.

“He’s a genuine, three-dimensional cricketer across all three formats.

“His attitude is superb, he’s here to win and be part of a unit that’s going to win trophies in the years to come.” said the Northants assistant coach.

Taylor joins up with the Steelbacks squad immediately, and is available for selection for Friday’s Vitality Blast fixture in Taunton.

He has played in five of Leicestershire Foxes' T20 Blast matches this season, including their six-wicket defeat at Durham on Sunday.

That proved to be his final game for the club, with chief executive Sean Jarvis saying: “We made Tom a very good offer to reflect both his performances and how much we valued him, and are extremely disappointed to lose Tom having supported him through previous injuries.

“It is a huge week ahead in terms of Vitality Blast qualification and we have made the decision to give other players the chance to stake their claim for selection in the best interests of the club.

“We would like to thank Tom for his contribution over the last three years and wish him well for the future.”

In first-class cricket, he has taken 96 wickets in his 32 matches to date at an average of 32.12, and scored 820 runs at 20.02, with a highest score of 80.

In List A matches Taylor has scored 242 runs at an average of 48.4, with a highest scored of 98 not out, and with the ball he has taken 13 wickets at 46.3.