Off-spinning all-rounder Simon Harmer joined the club in October 2016 originally on a one-year contract as a ‘Kolpak’ player.

In his debut Essex season of 2017, Harmer showed his credentials as he clinched 72 wickets at 19.19 in the County Championship, including two ten-wicket hauls, and played a pivotal role in helping Essex claim the County Championship title. Although Essex failed to defend their title in 2018, Harmer returned another 57 wickets.

The following season, the South African Offspinner helped the club to a maiden T20 Blast success after taking over the captaincy in the shortest format earlier in the season. Leading from the front on Finals Day, Harmer took a seven-wicket haul before hitting the winning runs in the final.

A few days later, another 5-fer at Taunton took his returns in the Championship to 83 at 18.28 as Essex lifted another trophy and reaching new heights to help secure a second Championship in three years. Being rewarded with the Wisden Cricketer of the year in 2020.

Harmer’s First-Class record caught the attention of South African selectors, leading to a call up to the South African Test Side, for the first time since November 2015, in 2022.

On his return, he showed exactly what Essex had been missing out in his absence as he took career-best match figures of 15/207 against Hampshire as he helped Essex to a nervy final day win by just 12 runs and, once again, being the County Championship Division 1 leading wicket-taker with 59 wickets.