Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Adam Lyth on the drive for Yorkshire against Essex at York last summer.
Adam Lyth has his eyes on a prize with Yorkshire before he hangs up his bat.
The prolific opener has signed a one-year contract extension with the county, taking his deal through until the end of 2027.
Lyth will be 40 by the time that ends though shows no signs of slowing up. He has, for example, topped 1,000 runs in the Rothesay County Championship in each of the last three seasons.
The left-handed legend has regular said in recent years that he will play for as long as he can. In the club release announcing his contract extension, he said: “I still have a lot to give.”
And speaking further to Lyth earlier this week, we asked him if there was anything he was determined to tick off before he retired.
“I want to win more silverware at this club,” he said.
“I’ve only won two Championships here. I say only, but not everyone gets the chance to do even that. But we won it in 2014 and 2015, and I want those days again.
“That’s what’s driving me to get better every year, to keep working hard.
“I’ve got so much more to give than just my runs behind the scenes, helping these young lads, the way they prepare, the way they train, in-game, that sort of thing.
“We’ve got a very good group of young players who I think in the next couple of years, with this coaching staff and the recruitment that we’ve done, have a fantastic chance.”
Lyth has been preparing for the new season both at home in Whitby and at Headingley, and he has not been involved in any of the short-form overseas leagues this time like he has regularly been in the past.
He will not be part of the forthcoming month-long training camp in Melbourne, which starts under the guidance of Mick Lewis at the end of the month.
He added: “Mags is quite relaxed with me during the winter.
“With me living in Whitby, he’s said, ‘Just come in one day a week and do your fitness work at home and spend some time with the family.
“To be fair, it’s been like that for the last four or five years, really.
“Then, after Christmas, I come in and join the boys and be in four days a week. It works really, really well.
“I look forward to this time of year. It’s about hitting balls now and getting ready for the start of the season, which comes around very quickly now.”
Lyth is set to reach two significant career milestones in 2026, both 16,000 first-class runs and 15,000 in the Rothesay County Championship. He currently has 15,910 first-class runs to his name and 14,376 in the Championship.
Four more centuries across any of the formats would also take him to 50 in his senior career.
