Matthew Hoggard

Former England seamer Matthew Hoggard is expected to make a decision on his future early next week as he weighs up rival bids from Leicestershire and Sussex.

Essex, Worcestershire and Middlesex were thought to be looking at Hoggard - who was released by Yorkshire at the end of last season - but the Foxes were first to make their interest known, while Sussex have joined the race with a strong bid of their own.

Leicestershire chief executive David Smith said: "We met with Matthew on Thursday and showed him round the club, but we don't expect anything to happen until early next week as Matthew will be taking the weekend to think about things. We have offered him the same (as Sussex), a three-year deal."