Ian Salisbury joins Middlesex as consultant coach following Sussex departure

Ian Salisbury, the former England legspinner, has joined Middlesex as a consultant coach, four months after his abrupt departure from Sussex due to a non-cricketing dispute with one of his players.

Salisbury, 52, was placed on gardening leave at Sussex in September, where he had been co-head coach alongside James Kirtley, and left the club at the end of the season.

He will now work alongside his fellow consultant Mark Ramprakash at Middlesex, under the direction of the first-team coach, Richard Johnson, as well as club coach Rory Coutts, and Director of Cricket Alan Coleman.

"I'm delighted to have joined Middlesex's coaching group and it's great to be back at Lord's, a ground I played at in the early stages of my career as an MCC Young Cricketer, and where I made my Test debut for England," Salisbury said.

"I'm really looking forward to working with Jono and the rest of the coaching group here at Middlesex and to the challenges that playing in Division One will bring.

"The atmosphere around the playing group is really positive, with a terrific blend of experience and youth in the squad. I'm very much looking forward to working with them all and to helping them to develop as cricketers."

Prior to his role at Sussex, Salisbury had also been head coach at Surrey, and also served as head coach of England's Physical Disability Squad. He has previously worked alongside Johnson within England's Development Programme.

"I have known Sals for many years, having enjoyed a hard-fought playing career against him in the county game, before then touring and rooming with him on overseas tours with England to both India and Bangladesh, and then finally getting to coach alongside him in the England Development pathway," Johnson said.

"I have always enjoyed a fantastic relationship with him and know just how good a coach he is. He has a vast knowledge of the game, is hugely experienced both as a player and as a coach, and he will make a fantastic addition to our coaching group at Middlesex as we look to develop and nurture the talent we have within our playing squad here."

Salisbury is expected to work extensively with Middlesex's spin contingent, in particular the likes of Luke Hollman and Thilan Walallawita, as the club seeks to build on a successful 2022 in which they earned promotion back to the top flight of the Championship.

"Bringing people of Sals's quality into the group, alongside the likes of Ramps, can only be a positive thing," Johnson added. "Aside of everything our players will learn from him, he will also add an enormous amount of knowledge and wisdom to us as a coaching group which we can all benefit from.

"He's a great bloke, is just the kind of character I have been looking for, and is a welcome addition to the club. It's not often that people of his quality come available, so when he did, I jumped at the chance to secure his services."