WORCESTERSHIRE paceman Kabir Ali has won the prestigious Cricket Society award for the Most Promising Young Cricketer of the Year.

It was presented by The Lord Alexander of Weedon, President of the MCC, at the society's autumn dinner, held at the Royal Over-Seas League in London.

The 19-year-old, who made his debut in 1999, came to the fore last season, taking 17 wickets at an average of 38.88 and scoring 201 runs, averaging 18.27. He also shone in limited-overs cricket.

He will be hoping to emulate some of the players who have won the society's award since it was established in 1956. They include subsequent England captains Mike Atherton and Chris Cowdrey and current England players Mar-cus Trescothick, Michael Vaughan, John Crawley, Mark Alleyne, Nick Knight and Mark Ramprakash.