Nottinghamshire have signed Zimbabwe Test captain Brendan Taylor as a Kolpak player, subject to approval from the England and Wales Cricket Board.
Owais Shah's county career will continue into 2015 after he signed another contract with Hampshire to play in the NatWest T20 Blast. Shah retired from first-class cricket at the end of the 2013 season but has continued to play in the shortest-format and appeared for Hampshire last season
Mahela Jayawardene has signed a deal to play in the NatWest T20 Blast for Sussex. His signing means the T20 Blast will be sprinkled with a little more world class but his availability for just seven of the 14 group matches again highlights the difficulty of attracting overseas talent to the protracted competition.
Peter Willey and George Sharp have lost their age discrimination case against the England and Wales Cricket Board. The 65-year-old pair were removed from the first-class umpire list with both now having reached the ECB's 'expected retirement age'. My view is that while the ECB has won the case, it's another example of them not using their common sense
Derbyshire have signed veteran Sri Lanka batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan for two spells this summer. The 38-year-old will replace Martin Guptill as their overseas player in June and return in early August for the rest of the season
Leicestershire have signed experienced batsman Mark Cosgrove on a two-year deal and appointed him captain. The South Australia left-hander, 30, holds a British passport and will be available for all formats of the game Not the most mobile in the field, but he will get stacks of runs in Div 2 (will be on the short list for my fantasy team)
Somerset have chosen South African fast bowler Alfonso Thomas to captain the county in one-day cricket in 2015. Although former England opener Marcus Trescothick, the county captain, will lead the team in County Championship games, Thomas, 38, will do the job in the T20 Blast and the One-Day Cup.
Derbyshire have signed one of the doughtiest T20 death bowlers, Nathan Rimmington, for the entire 2015 NatWest T20 Blast. The signing puts effectiveness ahead of glamour with Derbyshire convinced they have secured one of the most parsimonious bowlers in the closing overs in the T20 game.
Somerset have signed West Indies opener Chris Gayle to play up to six matches during this summer's T20 Blast. He will arrive on either 22 or 29 May, depending on how far his Royal Challengers Bangalore franchise progress in the Indian Premier League.
Kevin Pietersen has rejoined Surrey for the 2015 season as he steps up his bid to earn an England recall. He has signed a deal to play primarily first-class cricket and will appear in Surrey's County Championship opener against Glamorgan, from 19 April
http://www.oddschecker.com/cricket/county-championship-div-1/county-championship-division-1/winner Here are all the odds for outright winner of the County Championship Division One.... Hants are a juicy 12/1....We've got a class batting line up and have made some shrewd additions to the bowling, could be the dark horses this season.
and here's another signing for you: Hampshire have signed West Indies fast bowler Fidel Edwards as a Kolpak player across all formats for the second half of the 2015 season. The 33-year-old will join in time for Hampshire's opening One-Day Cup match against Sussex on 27 July.
Lancashire and Middlesex are looking to replace Peter Siddle and Adam Voges respectively after the pair were called into Australia's Ashes squad.
Champions Birmingham Bears have signed New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum for this summer's T20 Blast. McCullum has signed a seven-game deal, which should make him available for half of the Bears' qualifying group games, as they aim to defend the trophy they won for the first time in August. He is due to arrive at Edgbaston after New Zealand's short tour of England.
County champions Yorkshire have signed India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara as their overseas player after Younus Khan pulled out of his proposed move to Headingley. The Pakistan international, 37, agreed to a return to the White Rose on a short-term deal in February. However, Younus has now said that he would be unable to turn down a possible call to tour Bangladesh with Pakistan.
Surrey have signed Australia all-rounder Moises Henriques for this summer's NatWest T20 Blast. Henriques will join Surrey immediately after the Indian Premier League season concludes at the end of next month and will be with them throughout their Blast campaign and also as overseas cover for Kumar Sangakkara depending on his Test commitments in the second half of the summer.
Worcestershire have signed Sri Lanka spinner Sachithra Senanayake as a short-term replacement for Saeed Ajmal. Ajmal, 37, may not be available until later in the season after being named in Pakistan's squad for the tour of Bangladesh starting next week
Glamorgan fast bowler Michael Hogan faces a second scan on a hamstring injury to determine how long he is likely to be sidelined. The 33-year-old suffered the injury in February playing for Western Australia. He aggravated it on the eve of a planned comeback in March and is likely to miss the start of the new season.
Lancashire have signed Australia all-rounder and World Cup winner James Faulkner as an overseas player to cover for Peter Siddle. Pace bowler Siddle has been named in Australia's squad for their Ashes series with England later this year
