Date of birth – 10 Aug 1978 Paignton, Devon

Nottinghamshire First Class Debut – 29 May 1998 v Durham (h)

Considered by many to be the finest wicket keeper in English cricket, Chris Read has been as close to an ever-present for Nottinghamshire in recent years.

Blessed with fast hands, lightning reflexes and excellent ability with the bat, Read has been the architect of countless victories from the crease and behind the stumps.

The Devon-born wicket-keeper/batsman started his career at Gloucestershire but moved to Trent Bridge and was soon fast-tracked into the England side, making his Test debut in 1999.

His maiden first class century, 160 against Warwickshire, came during the same season and over the next decade he established himself as one of the very best in his profession, both with the gloves and as a more than capable middle-order batsman.

His consistency has been at the forefront of Chris’ career and he looked set to achieve a mammoth 100 consecutive County Championship appearances, before injury ruled him out of what would have been his 99th, against Surrey at Trent Bridge.

Adjudged unfortunate not to have made more than 15 Test and 36 ODI appearances, England’s loss became Nottinghamshire’s gain as he assumed the county captaincy in 2008, leading his side to the Championship title two years later.

After winning the Yorkshire Bank 40 trophy in September 2013, Read announced that he would relinquish the limited-overs captaincy to James Taylor, while remaining the leader of the county’s LV= County Championship team.