Derbyshire all-rounder Jonathan Clare has signed a new contract which commits him to the club until the end of 2009.

There is also an option to extend the contract by a further year.

The 21-year-old has made a promising start to his first-class career, taking 15 wickets at 19.53 and scoring 199 runs at 39.80.

Clare said: "Becoming a pro cricketer with Derbyshire was a dream come true and having the security of at least two seasons to prove myself is great."

Clare recorded a debut five-wicket haul against Nottinghamshire in the County Championship towards the end of last season.

He is a talented young cricketer and a potential star of the future Head of cricket John Morris

This season, a superb spell saw him take three wickets for one run in the recent Championship game against Essex.

And with the bat he hit a half-century in each innings against Warwickshire last week - the second of which was a brutal 64 scored from just 59 balls.

Head of cricket John Morris said: "I am delighted because he is a talented young cricketer and a potential star of the future.

"Having broken into the team and showed so much promise at the end of last season and earned his first professional contract, Jonathan has worked very hard on his game and has earned this extended deal."