Wes Durston

Wes Durston's uncomplicated see-ball, hit-ball approach made him a favourite with Derbyshire supporters and probably testified to a late-developing career that did not evolve at Derbyshire until his thirties. He also skippered Derbyshire in limited-overs cricket.

Born in Taunton and educated at Millfield, Durston had become a regular part of Somerset's middle order by 2006. The previous year had been something of a breakthrough for Durston as he played several times in the Championship and was an ever-present in Somerset's victorious Twenty20 cup campaign.

He had shown his promise on debut in 2002 with a cavalier 45-ball 55 against West Indies A, but after eight seasons at the county Durston lost his contract in 2009.

He signed up with the Unicorns - the ECB's Recreational XI of the best un-contracted players in the country - and smashed 117 from just 68 deliveries to lead his team to a record run chase as they reached 326 to beat Sussex in a Clydesdale Bank 40 clash in May 2010.

That innings put Durston, a powerful hitter and a tidy off-spin bowler, on the radar once again, and he was duly signed by Derbyshire for their domestic Twenty20 campaign. After blazing a club record 111 off 59 deliveries against Nottinghamshire he was offered a full-time contract.

In the following two seasons he hit five first-class centuries as well as taking 60 wickets in all cricket. He passed 1,000 first-class runs in one season for the first time in 2011 and was Derbyshire's second highest Championship run-scorer with 801 in the 2012 season. He was unable to maintain those standards at a higher level, although he did console himself with some forceful innings in T20 and skippered Derbyshire in an unrewarding |T20 campaign in 2015.

He began to show his age in 2016, losing mobility, and with the new director of cricket, Kim Barnett, intent on a shake-up, his departure was no surprise.

ESPNcricinfo staff