Doug Bracewell: Northants sign New Zealand seamer for part of 2018 campaign

Doug Bracewell played in New Zealand's one-day series against the West Indies before Christmas

Northamptonshire have signed New Zealand seamer Doug Bracewell for the first month of the 2018 season.

The 27-year-old is available for four County Championship matches before South African all-rounder Rory Kleinveldt arrives in mid-May.

Bracewell has played 27 Test matches, 16 one-day internationals and 17 Twenty20 fixtures for New Zealand.

"It's a great opportunity to challenge myself in different conditions," Bracewell said.

The Tauranga-born bowler, whose father Brendon and uncle John both played Test cricket for the Kiwis, has taken 253 first-class wickets at an average of 33.64 and 113 wickets in international cricket.

He is also a handy lower-order batsman with a batting average of 27.23 in first-class cricket, including two centuries.

Northants head coach David Ripley added: "He is highly skilled and vastly experienced, with plenty of international experience under his belt, and he will give us the additional firepower we need alongside an already high-quality attacking unit."