The signing of England international leg-spinner Matt Parkinson has been described as a major coup for Kent by head coach Matt Walker.

Parkinson, 26, is set to join from Lancashire this November on a three-year deal, having played one Test for his country to date.

“It’s a great signing,” said Walker. “It’s a real coup for the club to have Matt coming.

“His record is outstanding. At only 26, he has a lot of cricket left.

“I don’t want to comment on what happened at Lancashire - that’s their business - but we realised that Matt’s not playing as much as he’d like.

“The fact he wants to come to us is brilliant news.

“When you sign a player of that quality, it gives everyone a huge lift. I’m thrilled about it.

“Usually, the queue for a player like that is quite long and distinguished. We’ve had dialogue with him.

“He is very clear on what his ambitions are and he sees it happening at Kent.”

Parkinson - whose twin brother, Callum, plays at Leicestershire - has featured in only one County Championship game for Lancashire this summer, in which he claimed six wickets.

Instead he has spent time on loan with Durham, while he has featured for Lancashire in their T20 Blast campaign.

All-rounder Joey Evison signed for Kent at a similar stage last year. He agreed a three-year contract then but also immediately joined Spitfires on loan for their successful Royal London One-Day Cup season.

Asked if a similar agreement could be in the offing with Parkinson for Kent’s 50-over defence, which begins next month, Walker replied: “I don’t know is the honest answer.

“We have asked that question. That was a ‘No’ but, obviously, he has gone off and played in Division 2 for Durham.

“There could be an opportunity maybe but it depends what Lancs are doing.”

A player integral to Spitfires’ One-Day 2022 success with both bat and ball was spinner Hamid Qadri.

Walker concedes the arrival of Parkinson could restrict chances for Qadri but hopes the 22-year-old can continue to flourish with them after he extended his contract until the end of next term last winter.

He said: “When you have a role that’s very specific - being a spinner or a wicketkeeper - bringing in another in that role, it does make it more challenging.

“Hamid is a young cricketer. He has had some opportunities, which is great.

“When someone like Matt Parkinson comes up on the radar, you don’t want to miss that opportunity. That makes life more difficult for Hamid.

“It’s not often you play two spinners in the County Championship but, hopefully, we can continue developing him.

“Hamid’s a really promising young cricketer. You can go two ways, you can feel sorry for yourself and look down the line or crack on and do your best.

“That’s Hamid - he’s a scrapper and a fighter.

“He will use it to prove himself. That’s what you want.”

Kent are due to get their latest County Championship Division 1 clash against Essex under way today at Chelmsford.