by Alex Hoad

Kent all-rounder Darren Stevens says he hopes his pre-season success in Bangladesh is not the last he enjoys this season.

The 35-year-old is back in Kent after successfully defending the Bangladesh Premier League title with Dhaka Gladiators and a short stint in South Africa,

Revelling in his second straight title in Bangladesh last month, during which he was 12th in the league averages with 35.16, Stevens said: "I was delighted. Six weeks out there is a long time and it was hard graft but we had a good tournament.

"We put 200+ on the board in three straight games and five overall and if you do that you put a ton of pressure on the side you’re facing. It was a good way to start this year."

Stevens also revealed he was left "slightly frustrated" to have his pre-season preparations in Cape Town cut short by the call to join Kent training and admitted: "I was a bit disappointed about coming back so early.

"It was over six weeks until the first game and I was hoping for two or three weeks out in the warm in South Africa and maybe getting a T20 chance out there. I had no choice. My job is here."

Stevens revealed he’d talked Kent with head coach Jimmy Adams on his return.

He said: "He asked me my thoughts and what I thought we needed.

"We have about 70% to 30% oldies to youngies (with few in between) and I’m a bit worried about what happens if the senior players get injured. You’ll be relying on players who have hardly played any senior cricket and there will be a lot of pressure on them to come in and perform.

"The way we left it was if the right person came along at the right price, then I’d like to think we’d be able to do something."