Hampshire leg-spinner Mason Crane has been signed on loan by Glamorgan for the entirety of the 2024 English domestic season.
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Crane is one of two signings announced by Glamorgan today (March 1), with Pakistan’s Mir Hamza set to join the club for the beginning of the 2024 season. Crane will be available for Glamorgan across the whole of the coming season.
The 27-year-old was first signed by Hampshire in 2015 having gone through their academy. He made his first-class debut against Durham in the 2015 County Championship season, impressing with five wickets in the match and a last-wicket stand with Lewis McManus to secure a draw. He took 31 wickets as a regular fixture in Hampshire’s first XI in 2016.
In 2017, Crane’s domestic performances were rewarded with a first international call-up for a T20I series against South Africa. He made his T20I debut in Southampton and was named in England’s Test squad against the West Indies later in the summer. Crane made his Test debut in the final match of the 2017-18 Ashes, becoming England’s youngest specialist spinner to debut for 90 years, and endured a difficult debut in an already lost series. His first Test wicket was repealed after he was shown to have overstepped, and he conceded figures of 1-193 in Australia’s only innings.
He struggled with a back fracture in the wake of the 2017/18 winter, missing the majority of the 2018 domestic season. Returning for the 2019 season, he made six appearances in the County Championship, taking five wickets, but found a more regular place in Hampshire’s side in the One Day Cup. He later admitted he was still feeling the effects of his back fracture during the 2019 season.
Crane’s problem in finding a fixed position in Hampshire’s red ball side is largely down to Liam Dawson’s role. Dawson has been a regular feature for Hampshire as a spin-bowling all-rounder, with one spinner usually sufficient across most of the English summer. Crane has played just four County Championship matches across the last two seasons, while he made 12 white-ball appearances for Hampshire across last summer.
Glamorgan finished in fifth place in Division Two of the 2022 County Championship, and did not qualify for the knockouts of either the One Day Cup or T20 Blast. However, with limited experienced specialist spin options available at the county, Crane is more likely to feature in all formats.
