Hampshire bring in Somerset head groundsman Simon Lee to replace retiring Nigel Gray

Lee heads to the Ageas Bowl after 18 years at Taunton in place of Gray, who came out of retirement for this season following the departure of Karl McDermott to Lord’s

Hampshire have brought in Somerset head groundsman Simon Lee to replace the retiring Nigel Gray.

Lee, who spent 18 years at Taunton, will now head to the Ageas Bowl in place of Gray, who came out of retirement for the 2019 season after Karl McDermott had departed for Lord's.

The former Somerset head groundsman has consistently been recognised for the excellent standard of pitches at Taunton, for which he has received ECB accolades as recent as last season's Business of Cricket Awards for the 'Best One-Day Pitch', an award he also won in 2015.

"This has been a massive decision for me to make. I've given it a lot of thought and I want to challenge myself at a larger venue that regularly hosts international cricket. I've been at Somerset for nearly 20 years and this is one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make. I have so many incredible memories of Somerset.

"I probably take the most satisfaction from the fact that we've been able to change the characteristics of the pitches in four-day cricket and are able to give people exciting cricket to watch.

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"The fact that we get so many people coming to the ground to watch cricket shows that we must be doing something right and I'm very proud to be leaving that legacy."

Hampshire director of cricket Giles White added: "Nigel has been outstanding as ever this year and our thanks go to him for all his hard work over the last 12 months.

"Looking ahead, we are thrilled to welcome Simon to the club and he arrives with an excellent reputation and is very well respected across the game – we're looking forward to Simon beginning his new role here at the Ageas Bowl."

Lee will remain at Taunton to carry out necessary autumn renovations before taking up his new position at the Ageas Bowl in January.