Draft:Ben Cliff

Benjamin Michael Cliff (born 13 October 2022) is a professional cricketer who plays for Yorkshire County Cricket Club. A right-handed batsman and right-arm medium pace bowler. He made his List A debut for Yorkshire against Northamptonshire on 2 August 2022, and his first-class debut on 10 September 2023 in a County Championship match against Glamorgan.

Early life
From Halifax, Cliff played as a youngster at Copley Cricket Club in the Halifax League.

Career
He signed a rookie contract with Yorkshire in July 2022. He began to be included in first-team squads which Yorkshire Director of Cricket Darren Gough described as “recognition for his performances” in second-XI cricket for Yorkshire. He made his List A Cricket debut for Yorkshire on 2 August 2022 against Northamptonshire, taking 1-44 from five overs in York.

During the 2023 season, he remained part of the Yorkshire red ball first team and in July 2023, was given a two-year professional contract with the county.

Playing in the Second-XI T20 final in July 2024, he took an unusual caught and bowled when Somerset batter Ned Leonard struck the ball against the batter at the non-strikers end which deflected it back to Cliff.

Having made his T20 Blast debut for Yorkshire earlier in the 2024 season, Cliff took career-best figures of 4/31 against Nottinghamshire at Headingley on 19 July 2024.

International career
Cliff played for England U19 on their tour of Sri Lanka in December 2021, where he took four wickets at an average of 23.25 before being a late call-up to the squad for the 2022 Under-19 World Cup. He also featured for the team in the 2022 summer season.