Derbyshire agree loan deal for Warwickshire wicketkeeper Alex Mellor

Mellor will provide cover for Harvey Hosein who is unavailable after fracturing his thumb in Wednesday night’s Royal London One-Day Cup fixture versus Lancashire Lightning.

The 25-year-old will be available for all forms including this Friday night’s NatWest T20 Blast fixture versus Durham Jets at Chester-le-Street, subject to successful clearance of paperwork with the ECB.

Mellor has been a regular for Warwickshire Second XI after earning a one-year deal with the Club at the end of the 2015 season.

The former Unicorns wicketkeeper become only the seventh Staffordshire batsman to hit a double-hundred in the Minor Counties Championship in 2015, with 208 not out against Suffolk - and he also set the county’s record for dismissals in the same match by taking 11 catches.

Head Coach, John Sadler said: “It’s a shame for Harvey that he will miss some cricket due to injury. Since coming back into the side, he’s performed well with both the gloves and bat, but he’s young and we know he’ll come back strong.

“With a busy period of white-ball cricket coming up, we’ve moved quickly to sign a quality wicketkeeper in Alex.

“He has experience with Warwickshire, and before that with the Unicorns and Staffordshire, and I’m sure he’ll do a terrific job for us.

“As well as providing valuable cover, the loan will give Alex a taste of first-team action at the business end of the season. We’re grateful to Dougie Brown and the team at Warwickshire for their support.”