Zak Chappell announced himself to county cricket in spectacular fashion in the final match of the 2015 season when he almost made a century on his first-class debut.
Zak was selected by Leicestershire for the match against Derbyshire at Derby as a pace bowler but he gave an early indication of his all-round potential by making 96 batting at number ten and sharing a last wicket partnership of 109 with Ollie Freckingham.
He also claimed the wicket of Derbyshire opener Ben Slater in each innings of the match with Slater later to become a team-mate when Zak followed a well-trodden path from Leicestershire to Nottinghamshire.
In the winter before he moved to Trent Bridge in 2019, Zak was selected for an England Lions tour of India having taken his maiden five wicket haul – six for 44 – to help Leicestershire beat Northamptonshire by six wicket at Northampton in June 2018.
Zak played alongside the likes of Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Sam Billings and Will Jacks in the Lions side against a strong India A team.
His four-season spell at Trent Bridge was interrupted by the Covid pandemic in 2020 and, included two loan spells with Gloucestershire in 2019 and 2022.
At the end of the 2022 season Zak decided to join Derbyshire in search of more regular first team cricket, a decision that saw him take 25 first-class wickets in his first two seasons with them, including 31 in 2024.
He also took 26 T20 wickets in 2023 plus another six playing for Oval Invincibles in The Hundred.last season.
In late 2024 Zak was signed by Bangladesh side Rangpur Riders for the Global Super League in Guyana. He took a T20-best five for 23 in the tied match against Hampshire and also played in the final in which Rangpur beat Victoria to win the multi-nation tournament.
Zak, who was coached by former England seamer Dean Headley while he was a student at Stamford School in his native Lincolnshire. He continues to play for the Stamford Town club when his Derbyshire commitments permit.
First-class
Highest score: 96 Leicestershire v Derbyshire at Derby 2015
Best bowling: 6-44 Leicestershire v Northampton at Northampton 2018
List A
Highest score: 94 not out Derbyshire v Northamptonshire at Northampton 2024
Best bowling: 4-39 Derbyshire v Northamptonshire at Northampton 2024
T20
Highest score: 18 not out Derbyshire v Northamptonshire at Northampton 2024
Best bowling 5-23 Rangpur Riders v Victoria at Providence 2024/25
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