England Test captain Alastair Cook has signed a new two-year contract with Essex.
The 31-year-old has played 79 first-class matches with the county side in the last 13 years and had a strong start to the 2016 season.
"I've been at Essex for all of my career since making my debut in 2003 and I hope to continue playing here for as long as possible," he told the club website.
Cook has scored three centuries so far this season and amassed a total of 523 runs in Essex's first four matches of the year.