Canterbury (UK), Dec 9 : Former England captain Adam Hollioake has been appointed as Kent men's new head coach until at least the end of the 2027 season, the English county club announced here on Monday.

The 53-year-old Hollioake enjoyed a stellar playing career spanning 16 years, captaining Surrey to nine trophies, leading England in ODI cricket, and being named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2003.

After making 39 appearances for England, the former all-rounder retired from playing in 2007. After a spell as head coach of the Hong Kong national team at the 2000 ACC Trophy, he returned to coaching in 2017 as head coach of the Boost Defenders in Afghanistan's Shpageeza Cricket League.

He has had stints with England Lions as a fielding coach, with Queensland Cricket as a pathway and batting coach, and was a batting coach for Pakistan's tour of Australia in 2023, before taking on a role as assistant coach at Surrey in the 2024 domestic season.

On joining Kent as men's head coach, Hollioake said: 'I'm honoured to be appointed as the head coach of Kent. It's an amazing chance for me to work with a great squad of players and to be involved with a county with such a rich history of success. County cricket is something that I hold extremely close to my heart, and this is an opportunity that I could not turn down.'

Kent's Director of Cricket, Simon Cook, said: 'Adam has shown throughout his playing and coaching career that he has outstanding leadership qualities and a winning mentality, something that was instrumental in our decision to move in a new direction following our robust and thorough search for a new men's head coach.

'We welcome Adam into the Kent Cricket Family and look forward to his leadership of our men's side going into the new season,' said Simon Cook.

/IANS