Cameron Steel became the youngest double-centurion in Durham's history when, at 21, he struck 224 against Leicestershire at Grace Road. Steel batted for more than eight hours and faced 408 balls in an epic innings that was the centrepiece of an impressive 2017 season, in which his 889 runs at 40.86 provided one of the few bright spots for a Durham side that began life in Division Two on -48 points. California-born Steel played for the first team in all three competitions, and made his maiden first-class century against Northamptonshire at the Riverside in June.

Testing Chester-le-Street pitches, with the Championship banished to the margins of the season, contributed to a lean 2018 summer (no regular Durham batsman averaged 30), but Steel's penchant for a big score revealed itself late in the campaign when he took 160 off a high-class Sussex attack in a match where no other batsman scored more than 47. He lost his place in the Championship XI the following summer, but explored the possibility of an international career when attending a USA training camp.

In 2021, he moved down to Surrey on a two-year deal mid-season and has been operating primarily as a squad player across all three formats.

ESPNcricinfo staff