by By Charles Randall
Courtney Walsh accepted a new three-year contract with Gloucester
shire yesterday, while Viv Richards may postpone his retirement
from first-class cricket. The relief was almost tangible among
the Gloucestershire management in the refurbished corridors of
the County Ground at Bristol when fast bowler Walsh confirmed his
decision. He will also continue as captain. Walsh, 30, made his
Gloucestershire debut in 1984 and has become a crucial member of
the side with his bowling, but he admitted he would have left the
county this summer if he had not been offered a long-term con-
tract. He said: "The captaincy didn't really carry any weight in
the negotiations. I wasn't happy with a one-year roll-over con-
tract." Departure would have left Gloucestershire in severe
difficulty. They would have had little hope of signing a replace-
ment overseas seam bowler of international calibre, and there has
been little sign yet that David Lawrence, Walsh's would-be new
ball partner, will make a full recovery from his broken knee-cap.
Viv Richards confirmed that he was interested in remaining in
first-class cricket and "would consider any offer which came my
way".
Richards (41) had decided to retire at the end of the season when
his contract with Glamorgan expires, but his performances during
a successful summer for the Welsh county have prompted him to
reconsider his future. The problem in signing overseas players
has been exacerbated by next summer's two incoming tours by New
Zealand and South Africa, while Pakistan's proposed tour of Sri
Lanka next July has become an added complication. Surrey, with
Waqar Younis, and Somerset (Mushtaq Ahmed) have resigned them-
selves to only half a season's service from their Pakistan Test
players, and Lancashire will probably have to adopt a similar
attitude with Wasim Akram. Essex remain the only county without a
name linked to them. They were seeking a seam-bowler rather than
a batsman to replace Salim Malik, though their options would
widen if they signed Paul Jarvis, Yorkshire's out-of-favour Eng-
land fast bowler. Peter Edwards, Essex's secretary, said yester-
day: "We have a list of names, but I can honestly say we have
spoken to nobody yet. It all depends on the domestic scene."
Desmond Haynes, the West Indies opening batsman, is considering a
new contract offered to him by Middlesex, the new county cham-
pions. Andrew Cottam, the Somerset and former England U-19 left-
arm spinner, has signed a two-year contract with Northamptonshire.
Cottam was born in Northampton and his father Bob, now Somerset's
cricket manager, played for the county. Registrations for 1994
(West Indians unless stated): Derbyshire (Ian Bishop), Durham
(Anderson Cummins), Essex (to be decided), Glamorgan (Ottis
Gibson), Gloucestershire (Courtney Walsh), Hampshire (Winston
Benjamin), Kent (Carl Hooper), Lancashire (Wasim Akram, Pakistan)
Leicestershire (Phil Simmons), Middlesex (Desmond Haynes), North-
amptonshire (Curtly Ambrose), Nottinghamshire (Jimmy Adams),
Somerset (Mushtaq Ahmed, Pakistan), Surrey (Waqar Younis, Pakis-
tan), Sussex (Franklyn Stephenson), Warwickshire (Manoj Prabhakar,
India), Worcestershire (Ken Benjamin) Yorkshire (Richie Richard-
son).
Thanks ::::: The Daily Telegraph and Muthu
=====
Vicky:
UMass, Sep 13, 1993