Phil Jaques has been released from the second year of his Nottinghamshire contract after being appointed Assistant Coach of New South Wales Blues.

Jaques was influential in his debut season at Trent Bridge amassing 894 LV= County Championship runs in 11 matches. 

He will assist NSW Head Coach Trevor Bayliss in a role that will see him deputise on first team matters while keeping a close eye on emerging talent.

“We’ll have a look around and see if there is a signing to be made."

“Phil has made a big impact this season and we would never stand in the way of a player in his situation when a job comes along that’s a perfect fit,” said Nottinghamshire Director of Cricket Mick Newell.

“He has performed very well in a position that has been problematic for us in recent times and he deserves a lot of credit for the position we find ourselves in at the moment.”

Jaques was recruited as cover for Alex Hales who had been widely tipped to secure an Indian Premier League contract. Hales found form in a brief loan spell with Worcestershire and has since returned to prominence in all formats but Newell may yet seek to sign a replacement for Jaques next season.

“Alex has international ambitions and may yet feature in the IPL in 2015,” said Newell.

“We’ll have a look around and see if there is a signing to be made to fill the role we had in mind for Phil next summer.”