WARWICKSHIRE Vice Captain Ed Barnard has committed his future to the county by agreeing a new long-term contract at Edgbaston.
Barnard, 29, has signed a two-year extension until the end of the 2027 campaign, with an option for an additional third year.
The all-rounder has impressed since making the Midlands move from neighbours Worcestershire ahead of the 2023 season.
He has racked up 1,322 runs (ave 35.72) for Warwickshire in the County Championship – taking him past 5,000 career red ball runs – and claimed 54 wickets, including two five-fers.
But it is in the Metro Bank One Day Cup that Barnard has shone. He has been named the competition’s Player of the Year in both of the last two seasons after dominating the Most Valuable Player charts with bat and ball.
He was the joint leading wicket taker in 2024 with 19 (15.68 ave) and among the top run scorers with 433 and an average of 61.85.
Barnard has made 15 appearances for Bears in the Vitality Blast, scoring 150 runs, and he’s hoping to cement a place in the T20 side this summer.
“T20 is part of my game I’ve worked on really hard,” said Barnard, who hit an unbeaten 69 from 34 balls in Bears’ Abu Dhabi Super Cup win over Yorkshire Vikings recently.
“Moving to Warwickshire, I knew they had a strong Blast team. It wasn’t going to be easy to be in the team the whole time straight away. I’ve been involved but obviously, if you’re not playing at times it’s frustrating.
“But hopefully I’ve proved I can perform in that format and get more opportunities this year and play a part in getting us to Finals Day.
“I’m really pleased with how the last two years have gone. It’s a great group of lads, very competitive, they play the game in the right way but get on well off the pitch.
“I feel confident going into the new season. I’ve had a good winter, gym and technical stuff pre-Christmas but since then I’ve been outside playing competitive cricket.
“I had a good time in Australia, now in Abu Dhabi, and feel like we’re in a good place to hit the season hard.
“We’ve a great chance of competing for trophies in all three formats.
“We want to get off to a good start in the Championship, that’s important, get some early momentum. And in the Blast we’ve won more games than any other side over the last two years so I’m sure it’ll come right soon.”
Born in Shrewsbury, Barnard developed through the Worcestershire Academy and made his debut in 2015 in all formats.
The right-arm seamer and batter made more than 250 appearances for Worcestershire before moving to Warwickshire.
First Team Coach Ian Westwood, said: “Ed is one of the country’s top allrounders and a vital part of our squad.
“The exciting thing is, he’s still improving and motivated to help the Bears win trophies across all formats.”
