Surrey let unsettled Footitt return to Midlands

MARK Footitt, so regularly tipped for England, has dropped into Division Two having re-signed for Notts following a sudden departure from Surrey.

The left-arm paceman, 31, has left the Oval for family reasons and agreed a deal with the OneDay Cup winners, who he played for between 2005 and 2009, for the rest of the current season and the next two campaigns.

Footitt, called-up to the 14-man England Test squad in August 2015 following injury to James Anderson in the third Ashes Test at Edgbaston, joined Surrey from Derbyshire in October 2015 and has 34 wickets in eight Championship matches this season.

But his family have opted to stay in the East Midlands and Footitt is looking forward to returning home.

He said: “When I signed for Surrey, I looked forward to a long and successful career at the Oval. However, I’ve not been able to settle in London, away from my partner and my daughter.

“We’ve really struggled being apart and my relocation to London has meant I’ve been away from family support. We’ve tried to solve these problems without success, and have therefore had to ask for my release.

“I am extremely grateful to Surrey, and (director of cricket) Alec Stewart in particular, for their understanding of this situation which is not one I ever envisaged happening – and am hugely appreciative of their decision to allow me to leave and be back with my family.”

Footitt almost realised his England ambitions again when he was chosen for the 2015/16 tour of South Africa, though he was never picked for a match XI.

He had an injury-hit 2016, picking up a side strain in just the second match, with Jake Ball and Toby Roland-Jones surging ahead in the England ranks.

Notts are desperate for pace bowlers. James Pattinson’s spell at the club has ended while Stuart Broad is on England duties. Luke Fletcher suffered a horrific injury in the T20 Blast and Ball has also been injured.

Notts’ director of cricket Mick Newell said: “We’ve lost a lot of the players who have got us to the top of the table, although hopefully Jake will be back soon.

“Mark wants to come back to play his cricket in the East Midlands, so we’re very pleased to welcome him back.

“He’s obviously blossomed as a cricketer since he was last here, both at Derbyshire and Surrey, and we believe he can help us go where we want to go for the rest of this season and in the following two seasons at least.”