Rose played in the final Test against England in Antigua and comes highly recommended by former Northants pace bowler Curtly Ambrose.

Chris Lewis relaunched his Leicestershire career by snapping up three wickets during a pre-season tour match in Barbados. The former England all-rounder, who started as a professional at Grace Road before spells at Nottinghamshire and Surrey, took three for 28 in six overs in a drawn game against Carlton at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown.

New Zealand yesterday extended the contract of national coach Steve Rixon through to the 1999 World Cup and the following four-Test tour of England.

Sussex have announced a £100,000 sponsorship deal with IDentilam, a Horsham-based company that specialises in supplying metallic strip security cards. Initially the deal is for one year.