ESSEX captain Mark Pettini has signed a two-year contract extension at the Ford County Ground.

Batsman Pettini led the county to Friends Provident Trophy success and promotion from NatWest Pro40 Division Two in 2008.

And the 25-year-old, who lives in East Hanningfield, was rewarded with a new contract that will keep him at Chelmsford until the end of the 2011 season.

"I'm very pleased to finally put pen to paper on a new contract," said Pettini.

"I've been trying to sort this out most of the season but it was a busy summer so I'm delighted to have now secured my future with Essex.

"This contract puts a cap on a successful and very enjoyable year."

Pettini's batting form, which he struggled for in 2007 after unexpectedly taking over the captaincy from the injured Ronnie Irani midway through the season, also improved this summer.

The former Cardiff University student hit match-winning centuries in the Friends Provident Trophy group stage victories at Kent and Surrey before hitting a purple patch of eight fifties in 17 innings late in the season.

Pettini also made 856 first-class runs at an average of 37.21 - a marked improvement on the previous year.

"My runs tally was better (than in 2007) so I was fairly pleased with that - particularly at the start of both the NatWest Pro40 and the Friends Provident Trophy," he added.

"It's important to look at how many games you help to win and I definitely had an effect in more games." With his new contract now signed, Pettini is now preparing to leave for Australia - where he spent ten years of his upbringing while his astronomer father Max worked at a Sydney university - at the end of the month.

There, he will enjoy a few weeks rest, relaxation and fishing at the remote Melville Island Fishing Lodge, which is about 100km from Darwin in the Northern Territory.

Following his holiday, Pettini will head to Perth where he will work on his game and play a few local club matches before flying home in mid-January.