John Wright: Derbyshire appoint specialist T20 Blast coach

John Wright stepped down as New Zealand coach in 2012 after rejecting the offer of a new contract

Former India and New Zealand head coach John Wright has returned to Derbyshire as a specialist coach for the 2017 T20 Blast campaign.

The 62-year-old, who scored almost 15,000 runs for Derbyshire between 1977 and 1988, will rejoin the team in June, a month before the T20 Blast begins.

Director of cricket Kim Barnett said: "We could not have anybody with higher pedigree than John for this new role.

"He won the IPL with the Mumbai Indians and has been an international coach."

Wright, the talent scout for the Mumbai Indians, will also work closely with Barnett but his main focus will be the shortest form of the game.

"He was a great player at Derbyshire," former team-mate Barnett added.

"I could not be more pleased to get him back on board here and work with him. He is a fantastic strategist and will give us a lot of expertise technically and tactically."