Kashif Ali has been rewarded for his excellent start to his Worcestershire career with a two-year contract extension until the end of the 2024 season.

The 24-year-old initially put pen to paper on a short-term deal until the end of the current campaign after a successful trial period.

But a mountain of runs in the Seconds, including more than 700 runs in the last seven Championship innings, and a half-century on his County Championship debut against Derbyshire, has earned him a longer contract.

He also demonstrated his potential in white ball cricket when appearing in several games in the T20 Blast.

Kashmir-born Kashif was the first product of the South Asian Cricket Academy to earn a contract with a first class county.

Worcestershire Cricket Steering Group Chairman, Paul Pridgeon, confirmed the new contract for Kashif at today’s latest Members Forum in the Graeme Hick Pavilion.

He said: “Kashif has done fantastically well in the Seconds, and we saw glimpses of what could be a very good white-ball cricketer in the Vitality Blast and red ball cricketer against Derbyshire here.

“I have to give our coaching staff some credit for that because he came here on trial here at Kadeer Ali’s recommendation.

“He played for the South Asian Cricket Academy, and Kadeer said all the way through ‘this lad can play.’

“Kevin Sharp has also had a big input into things, with the work he has done with him, and the senior coaching staff have all looked at him, as have I, and we’ve all thought ‘he can play.’ As a result, we’ve rewarded him with the two-year deal.”

Speaking after the close of play today, Kashif said: “I was grateful to Worcestershire for initially giving me an opportunity, and I said that the aim was to try and achieve a longer contract.

“I’m delighted that the Club have now given me a new two-year contract, and playing professional cricket is something I’ve dreamed of since first taking up the game.

“I just hope I can repay the faith the Club have shown in me, and I will be focusing on continuing to improve and scoring as many runs as possible.

“I’ve been delighted with my form in the Seconds, and to make a half-century on my first class debut was pleasing, and hopefully, I can put in many good performances for Worcestershire.”