Warwickshire sign seamer Walker on emergency loan

Roman Walker has taken 19 wickets in 16 List A games for Leicestershire

Warwickshire have signed Leicestershire seamer Roman Walker on an emergency loan for the last two County Championship games of the season.

The 24-year-old will provide cover for the Bears injury-hit squad which has been depleted further by the loss of Michael Booth due to a side strain.

With Che Simmons also missing the rest of the season with a back problem, Walker has been drafted in should Warwickshire have any further fitness issues.

Walker has taken nine wickets in six One-Day Cup games for the Foxes this season and went wicketless in his only appearance in the T20 Blast against Nottinghamshire.

He has not been named in the Bears' 13-man squad for their final home match in the Championship against Essex which starts on Tuesday.

"With Che also ruled out for several weeks our squad is stretched so Roman is here as back-up should anyone else go down," Bears first-team coach Paul Robinson said.

"The loan market has strict criteria: you can’t loan from the same division or take anyone who’s played more than two games, so we’re limited."

Former captain Will Rhodes needs 46 runs against Essex to reach 1,000 for the season in what is his last game at Edgbaston before joining Durham next summer.

Olly Hannon-Dalby goes into the match chasing four wickets to notch 50 for the season for the third year in a row.

Despite only one red-ball win in 2024, the Bears should be safe from relegation with a 36-point cushion over second-from-bottom Lancashire with two rounds to go.