The 10-cap England opener has led Durham’s white-ball teams for the past two years
Alex Lees’ hundred underpinned the reply • Getty Images
Alex Lees has been appointed club captain at Durham and signed a contract extension that will keep him in the north-east for at least the next three seasons.
Lees, who played 10 Tests for England in 2022, captained Durham to the T20 Blast quarter-finals last season and has led their white-ball sides for the last two years. He will now take over in the County Championship too, replacing Scott Borthwick who is moving into a player-coach role as he approaches the end of his career.
Born in Halifax, Lees was widely predicted to be a future Test regular when he broke through at Yorkshire and captained their T20 side at 22. But he struggled for form after Jason Gillespie left as coach and made the move to Durham in 2018, where he showed enough to earn an England call-up after their 4-0 defeat in the 2021/22 Ashes.
He showed enough in his maiden series in the Caribbean to be retained for England’s first home summer under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s leadership, but was eventually dropped with a record of two fifties in 19 innings and an average of 23.84. He has been prolific for Durham since, scoring nine Championship hundreds in the last two seasons.
“I am delighted to be named the new men’s club captain at Durham,” Lees said in a club statement. “The move to the north east has been a good one for me, so to now be given the opportunity to captain Durham is a privilege and an honour. I believe this squad has the potential to really challenge to go on and win trophies.
“We have a great bunch of lads here and that is the thing which excites me the most. I feel like we have a group of players who can really challenge and go on to look to win something. This opportunity to captain Durham gives me an opportunity to put some real focus into the red-ball team, building on the foundations that we have built over the last few years.”
Marcus North, Durham’s director of cricket, said that he was “thrilled” that Lees had agreed to sign an extension to his deal, which was due to expire at the end of the 2025 season. “Alex’s dedication, passion and ambitions for the club has been evident since his arrival in 2018,” he said. “He is a popular and respected figure in the squad who leads with tenacity.”
Durham have strengthened their top order for 2025, with Will Rhodes and Emilio Gay signing from Warwickshire and Northamptonshire respectively. Sam Conners, who has played for England Lions, has also joined from Derbyshire and will add depth to their seam attack.
Lees may be able to call upon Stokes and Mark Wood in the early stages of the 2025 season after neither player registered for the IPL auction, though their availability will be dictated by the ECB. Brydon Carse will not be available in April or May, after he was signed by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the recent mega-auction.
