GARY BALLANCE is confident he returns to Yorkshire’s LV= County Championship team tomorrow as a much improved player following an exceptional maiden summer in England Test colours.

The availability of Ballance and Root for the final two matches of the season was confirmed by England on Saturday, providing Yorkshire with a major boost as they look to complete the job of winning their first title since 2001.

Root is expected to captain the side against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge tomorrow, a clash which they go into 26 points clear at the top knowing that a draw could see them home.

The pair have equally shared six Test centuries against Sri Lanka and India this summer, and they are set to come into Yorkshire’s side for unavailable duo Kane Williamson and Andrew Gale.

Ballance played the first four Championship matches of the season, scoring 410 runs with two centuries, including a best of 174.

Since then, the left-hander has scored 709 runs in seven summer Tests from number three in England’s order with back-to-back hundreds in the second and third Tests against India at Lord’s and Southampton.

“To represent your country and play the whole summer of Test match cricket has been amazing,” said the 24-year-old.

“To finish it with a series win against India was fantastic. Personally, I don’t think it could have gone better. It’s been brilliant.

“I feel like I’ve improved. I don’t know whether I’ve improved in any specific area. My all-round game just feels a little bit better.

“I went into the first Test with a bit of form from the first few Championship matches, and getting a score early in the Test series helped. I took that confidence into the rest of the summer.

“I’m just really pleased that it’s gone well. To bat at three and get some scores to put us in winning positions, I’m really pleased about that.”

The only disappointment of Ballance’s summer has been that he has not been able to cement a place in England’s one-day team ahead of next February’s World Cup. However, there is still time for that to happen with warm-up series in Sri Lanka and Australia to come.

Meanwhile, Adil Rashid says settling down off the field has contributed to his excellent form on it in this summer.

Rashid’s leg-spinners have accounted for 36 wickets from 12 Championship matches with 13 in his last two outings.

The 26-year-old has got married and fathered his first child in the last 12 months, and he added: "As you get older, and as time goes on, you start to change and recognise what's what. That's partly what my form’s down to.”