ABBAS, who has claimed 758 first -class wickets an average of 20.66, begins its stint in May after the end of Fergus O’Neill’s month -long magic form with the page. He then returns to the club in September for the final stages of the county championship season.

Abbas joins Collegiasamer O’Neill and South Africa’s international Kyle Verreynne in agreeing on terms as an overseas player for the upcoming Red-Ball campaign, with Conor McKerr (three-year contract) and Daniel Sams (Blast), who have also joined the club in front of the new season.

He had initially agreed to attend Nottinghamshire in the 2020 season before his stint was limited by the Covid-19 pandemic. He then starred in Hampshire and claimed 180 wickets of 19.07 across four summers with consecutive 50-wicket seasons in 2022 and 2023.

In a statement, Hampshire explained that they had released Abbas because of a need to “rebalance their team,” with James Vince’s retirement from first -class cricket, which means they are investigating opportunities for an overseas dough.

“Mohammad has consistently been one of the best artists in the County Championship and has inevitably produced his best for Hampshire time and time again,” said Giles White, the Lord’s director of Cricket. “His character will be severely missed in the dressing room and on the field, and everyone in the club wants him the very best in his career.

Abbas’ first-class form gave him a recall to the Pakistan test side against South Africa this winter. In total, ABBAS has 101 international wickets in 30 matches across formats, while his domestic record also includes 79 wickets for Leicestershire between 2018 and 2019.

“Trent Bridge is a special place to play cricket, so it will be nice to call the earth home this summer – especially after not being able to get over and play for Notts five years ago,” Abbas said.

“I’ve really had my time in the English game and the team on Notts is in an exciting place. There is a good mix of young talent and senior players who have been in a while and know their game really well and I watch forward to contributing in any way I can to their success.

Nottinghamshire’s principal coach Peter Moores said: “Players of MO’s experience and track record not come everything so often, so we are really excited about what he can bring us this summer.

“His control and his ability to find a way to get wickets on any kind of surface makes him extremely valuable; he has certainly been a tough opponent for us to meet over the years.

“We’ve already got an exciting group of bowlers available for the summer, and the addition of MO’s craftsmanship and subtlety will add another bowling style to the rest of our attack.”