Derbyshire sign Peterson

Today's announcement that Derbyshire have signed the experienced and highly talented South African all-rounder Robin Peterson for 2010, with another year's option, is something that should be celebrated by all fans of the club. Peterson was recently a member of his country's Champions Trophy squad, somewhat indicative of a bloke who can play the game.

Peterson is an experienced cricketer but is still, at 30, young enough to have plenty in the tank. He is a slow left arm bowler of real ability, as you would expect from a man with considerable international experience. Good enough to have taken 240 first class wickets, together with 130 in one day matches. He is also economical in Twenty/20 and has a career average of less than seven an over in the short game. He gives the ball a real tweak and has cultivated, apparently, a “wrong 'un” that comes into the batsman and poses problems.

Added to that he is a batsman of talent. Good enough to score five first class centuries and to open in one day cricket, he gives the ball a smack.

He is also known as a brilliant fielder, so in every aspect John Morris seems to have pulled out an absolute cracker from his South African book of cricket contacts.

Make sure you note that. We've signed a spinner – and a good one! A guy good enough to take five in an innings on eleven occasions and with a one day best of 7-24, which is impressive by any standards (OK, apart from Michael Holding's...)

Criticism of Wavell Hinds generally (and unfairly) focused on his being only an average fielder, an irregular bowler and a batsman who was slow to start an innings. I think his bowling was under-utilised but maybe there was a reason for that. Peterson will bring both control AND increased penetration to our attack as a front line spinner worth a place for the other things he brings to the mix.

His all round skills should improve our one day side, whether opening as a pinch hitter or coming in lower down to boost the run rate towards the end of the innings. His accuracy should give us a little more control when teams are coming at us with the bat. His fielding will disappoint no one.
Peterson has played with success in the Lancashire League with Burnley, averaging 52 with the bat and taking 37 wickets at 12 in a successful, but curtailed stay in 2006, when he was recalled for international training. He proved a popular professional there. Last year saw him play for Nelson, where he again excelled, averaging 37 with the bat while taking 44 wickets at just over eight runs each. I'd settle for that next season. I know that there's a world of difference between the leagues and the first class game, but they've given useful experience of our conditions to many cricketers over the years. Just ask Wayne Madsen how it helped him.

Back home, he moved from Eastern Province to Cape Town, where he plays for the Cape Cobras alongside Charl Langeveldt. It can't have done us any harm...

If you want a shot of our new man in “action”, go to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F5v2BLstC8 as he faces a backyard, cyclist powered bowling machine firing tennis balls at him...

Given the increasing strength of South African cricket, you have to be a decent player to get into their squad. You have to be even better to get into the team. With six Tests and 35 One Day Internationals under his belt, Robin Peterson is a very good player, suffering only in that South Africa, with Rolof Van Der Merwe and Paul Harris, now have three quality left arm spinners. In my opinion, we are very lucky to get him and I look forward to seeing what he will bring to the County Ground.

Throughout the close season the cricket boards have been full of people insisting that we needed a high class spinner. Now we've got one and he offers so much more.

Yes, I like this signing and I hope that it is similarly applauded by my fellow fans. I wrote recently that I thought Morris would produce a good spinner from somewhere, one who contributes in all facets of the game. And he has.

Excellent! More later.