Chris Schofield, the former England and Lancashire legspinner, is playing for Surrey in their 2nd XI match against Durham at Guildford. He was released by Lancashire at the end of 2004 and since then has been playing for Suffolk in the Minor Counties Championship, as well as turning out for Durham and Surrey second teams.

"It's a bit of a reality check and frustrating because I've played at a very high level but I'm just relieved that counties are still giving me the opportunity to get a contract," Schofield, who is now 27, told the BBC. "The last two years I've been bowling a hell of a lot of overs, 30 to 40 a week - the last two years at Lancashire I bowled 50 to 100 overs a season.

"The first step at the moment is to try to get a county contract, bowl the way I have been doing the last couple of months and take it from there."