James Foster has signed a new two-year deal with the Essex County Cricket Club.

Foster has spent his entire professional career with Essex, making his first class debut in August 2000 against Glamorgan.

Over the past 15 years, wicketkeeper Foster has become a crucial member of the squad across all formats, and he was awarded the captaincy in 2010, having scored at an average of 37.08, accompanied by 785 dismissals.

Foster’s career got off to a flyer when he was called into the England squad for the tours to India and Sri Lanka in 2001/02, after just a handful of County Championship appearances.

He then also featured in the Melbourne test later that year and went on to represent England at the 2009 Twenty20 World Cup.

“I am delighted to be committing myself to Essex for a further two seasons,” said Foster, who lost the captaincy this summer following the appointment of Chris Silverwood as head coach.

"I thoroughly enjoy playing but also have a huge interest in coaching and is something I am very eager to do in the future. But as long as I am still enjoying playing, and still keen to improve, I would like to play as long as I can."

And Essex Head Coach Chris Silverwood believes it was crucial to keep Foster at Essex.

“James, in my opinion, is still one of the best wicketkeepers in the world and so for us to have signed him for a further two years is fantastic,” he said. “He’s got vast experience and is a great individual to have around the Club, especially for the younger players coming through.”