A gutsy left-handed opening batsman, Ben Slater is a Derbyshire homegrown talent. He toiled hard in the initial few years before making a name for himself with Nottinghamshire. He started out as a middle order batsman for Derbyshire, and was often compared with former England international, Neil Fairbrother. Slater started out playing for Derbyshire second XI in 2009. He toiled hard in the domestic circuit and it took him five years to register his maiden first class ton. Slater suffered a concussion in 2018, which ended his Derbyshire career. He was struck by a booming bouncer from Jofra Archer and under the concussion protocol, had to be stretched out of the field. In 2019, he signed a deal with Nottinghamshire. Slater struggled for runs and averaged just above 20 in the 2019 County season. He was sent to Leicestershire on a loan spell, and started his Leicester career with a century on debut. He struck a career-best 172 against Lancashire, and was subsequently recalled two weeks later. A stylish left-handed player, Slater is a gutsy player who loves to grind out in the middle. He was rated highly in his early days, but the southpaw failed to capitalise on the opportunities which were given to him. (As of June 2021)
