Rogers takes new role with Gloucestershire as batting coach

FORMER Australian opener and Somerset captain Chris Rogers has agreed a two-month contract to coach Gloucestershire.

Rogers, who will be working across the Gloucestershire 1st XI and development squads on all areas of the game, joins the club with immediate effect.

When Rogers retired at the end of the 2016 season having steered Somerset to second-place in the County Championship, he had appeared in more than 500 professional games.

With a First Class average of 50 and a Test match average of 43 he was one of the most respected and prolific batsmen on the World stage before retiring from International cricket in 2015.â•©

Working with the Gloucestershire batters will be a key focus for him. He had a similar post with Somerset for part of last season.

Rogers has a wealth of experience in English county cricket gained played for Middlesex, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Northants and finally Somerset.

He served his cricket apprenticeship in the Devon League during three seasons playing for North Devon and latterly Exeter.

Gloucestershire hope he will hit the ground running thanks to his understanding of the subtleties and challenges of the county game.

Richard Dawson, Gloucestershire’s head coach, said: “It’s great to have Chris working with us for the first few months of the season.

“He not only brings with him a wealth of batting knowledge, but also leadership qualities having captained sides and experiences from successful changing rooms, all of which can be passed onto our players and coaching staff.

Rogers, who has already started work at the Brightside, said: “It is a great opportunity to work with a group of very talented players.

“There is a strong core of young batsmen at Gloucestershire and hopefully they can learn something from my time with them.”