James Hildreth: Somerset veteran extends contract until 2022

James Hildreth scored his maiden century for Somerset in 2004 against Durham and has gone on to hit 46 first-class 100s

Somerset batsman James Hildreth has extended his contract until the end of the 2022 season.

The 36-year-old, who made his Somerset debut 18 years ago, has scored 25,996 runs in 665 matches for the club across all formats of the game.

He is Somerset's all-time leading Twenty20 batsman with 3,694 runs and was granted a testimonial year in 2017.

"I absolutely love the club and I just want to go on playing here for as long as possible," Hildreth said.

"It's an amazing job to have and I'm very fortunate to have played for the length of time that I have.

"When I was offered an extension there was never a question mark about what I was going to do."

Hildreth scored the winning runs when Somerset won their last two trophies - the 2005 Twenty20 Cup and the Royal London One-Day Cup in 2019.

"He is phenomenal both on the field and off it," said Somerset director of cricket Andy Hurry.

"He is one of the most respected players in the domestic game because he has consistently delivered with the bat and in the field and his record speaks for itself.

"He loves this club, and his knowledge and experience of the game has benefitted the younger players in the squad."