Captain Daniel Bell-Drummond has been awarded a testimonial year by Kent for 2026.
Bell-Drummond, now 32, joined the club as a seven-year-old and has represented the county at senior level since 2011, earning men’s cap No.211 in 2015 and replacing Sam Billings as club captain in 2024.
Overall, the batsman has made more than 400 Kent appearances but missed the end of Kent’s 2025 term with a long-term knee injury.
Bell-Drummond said: “It’s a great honour to have been awarded a testimonial year and (to) follow in the footsteps of some very famous Kent players.
“I will be raising money for my nominated charities, Cardiac Risk in the Young, Iggy’s Fund and Platform Cricket – all of whom I have long associations with.
“My testimonial year committee is already working on plans for a number of events and I look forward to meeting as many Kent members and supporters as possible during the year.”
Director of cricket Simon Cook said: “Daniel is a proud one-club man and has excelled at every level throughout his time at Kent.
“As captain, he has shown leadership, played some landmark innings and is an important role model for our young players as they make their way into senior cricket.”
“This is the first testimonial awarded by Kent since Joe Denly in 2019 and there is no more fitting recipient than Daniel to receive this accolade,” chairman Krish Shanmuganathan said.
Bell-Drummond, the first player of Caribbean descent in Kent’s history to be captain, is one of only seven Kent cricketers to have scored a century for the county in all formats.
He helped them to 2021 T20 Blast glory and to promotion from County Championship Division 2 as runners-up seven years ago.
Bell-Drummond scored more than 1,000 runs in 2025, which included 223 in a two-wicket red-ball loss to Middlesex in early May and 100 off 49 balls in a four-run Blast victory at Somerset two months later.
He has also played Franchise cricket in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and New Zealand, as well as previously featuring for London Spirit and Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred competition.
Go to dbd2026.com for details of the events planned for the year – which starts with a launch lunch at the traditional starting venue of Maidstone’s Mercure Great Danes Hotel on Thursday, February 12 – or for more information.
