Worcestershire coach Richardson delighted to snap up Northants all-rounder Taylor

The 28-year-old will leave the County Ground at the end of the 2023 campaign, having put pen to paper on a four-year deal at New Road.

It brings an end to a three-year stint at Northants, with Taylor having joined the club from Leicestershire at the back end of the Covid-hit 2020 campaign.

And Pears coach Richardson is delighted to have landed a player he has been a fan off for a long time.

“Tom has been on my radar for quite a while," revealed Richardson. "I remember when he played for Leicestershire a few years ago, and he certainly stood out as a very good bowler.

“I’ve followed him quite closely, and he is just someone I’ve watched continually grow as a cricketer.”

Taylor hit a brilliant 100 from just 80 balls in the One Day Cup defeat to Worcester last week, and Richardson believes there is more to come from the player.

"There is still a huge ceiling there, a lot of potential,” he said. “But also Tom comes here with quite a lot of experience and a high skill set.

“Getting someone of Tom’s quality and experience is exciting for us. He gathers a lot of energy on the ball and gets it through nicely, and I would classify him as someone who hits the bat really hard.”

“He is skilful with the ball, plays in all formats, can do all sorts of jobs. We’ve watched him at Northamptonshire, and he bowls in the powerplay, bowls at the death.

“Tom is very good in the field, a good mover with really good hands, and with the bat we see someone contributing in the middle order.

“We are getting someone who is really good three facet skills in all formats. We feel it is quite a coup to get Tom to come over and play for us.”

As for Taylor, he says he is feeling 'immense excitement' at the switch to New Road, and believes Worcestershire is the 'perfect club' to help him take the next step on his 'cricketing journey'.

“It is with immense excitement that I join Worcestershire," said Taylor, who has played 96 times for Northants across all formats.

"I see the next four years as pivotal in my cricketing journey, and I firmly believe that Worcestershire is the perfect club to support me in my aspirations.

"I look forward to working closely with Alan Richardson and the other coaching staff, who are renowned on the circuit for helping develop players.

“The club’s commendable performances across all formats this season motivate me to contribute significantly with both bat and ball and help the club continue to progress."

Taylor is joining a Worcestershire club that is enjoying a good season across all formats.

The New Road club finished third in the Vitality Blast North Group to qualify for the quarter-finals, where they lost to Hampshire Hawks, and they finished third in Group B of the Metro Bank One Day Cup, the same section as the Steelbacks.

They will again travel to Hampshire in this Sunday’s play-off for a place in the semi-finals.

In the County Championship Division Two, Worcestershire are currently second and looking in good shape to claim one of the two promotion spots.

If they did that, it seems more or less certain they will replace Northants in the top flight with the County cut adrift at the bottom of division one.