JOE Clarke is closing in on 1,000 first-class runs in his first full season of first-team cricket and says it is a landmark he targeted and expected to achieve.

Clarke may only be 20 but he regards himself as a "senior batsmen" after his experiences with the England Lions last winter and this summer.

He passed the 900 mark for 2016 with his 98 against Glamorgan when only a superb one-handed boundary catch by Lukas Carey denied him a fifth century of the campaign.

Clarke said: "It (1,000 runs) is definitely a landmark I am keeping my eye on and is something I wanted to achieve at the start of the season.

"Hopefully in the few remaining games, I can go past that.

"I know it is only my first full season but I definitely feel as if I'm more mature than that and have more of a responsibility than someone who is playing their first year in the side.

"Having experienced the Lions in the winter and this summer, I definitely feel as if I'm a senior batter when it comes to our top six or seven.

"I don't think it is something people should look at and say, 'He is in his first full year and that's a good achievement'.

"It is certainly something I expect from myself and I hope Bumpy and the coaching staff and the lads expect me to get around that landmark."