Kent head coach Matt Walker says Allan Donald is already having a positive effect on his squad.

Donald joined up with the club in January after his visa issues had been sorted.

He went with the team on their pre-season tour in Antigua where they reached the semi-final of the West Indies Super50 tournament.

Walker said: “He’s already having an impact. It is simple stuff but people sit up and listen.

“It would be amazing if he didn’t have an impact. He’s one of the greats of the game and it would be disappointing if people did not respond to hime.

“It was great that he could spend some time with the group and it’s great for us to have a coaching staff that can move us forward. Long may it continue.”

Walker was not with the squad on their trip to Antigua, he was part of the coaching staff for England’s Tri-series with Australia and New Zealand Down Under.

Despite things not working out on the pitch for England he believes Kent will benefit from his work there.

Walker said: “It was a great experience. I was very lucky to be part of that and to be out with the group and be involved with what they do was great.

“It was good to experience how they work with the best players and pick up things along the way.

“It is not that dissimilar to what we do here and that is quite refreshing. We have players here who work just as hard.

“Sometimes you go on these trips and expect the wheel to be reinvented but there is nothing hugely different. It is the simple stuff but over and over again. There is a lot of consistency there.”

He was keeping a close eye on how Kent were performing in the West Indies though as a number of players achieved career-best bowling figures and batting scores.

Walker added: “I was really pleased and proud of how the boys did in Antigua. They learnt a lot from the previous year and we want them to learn from the experience.

“Along the way everyone contributed and it was good to see players putting their hands up for when the team starts to get picked.”