Welcome back to the County Championship! The momentous Test series in India has retreated to the back shelf of the memory, the T20 World Cup seems a long way off and I wonder how many players in either England squad will seek, or be allowed, some practice with their clubs. My fellow Somerset fans will no doubt be curious to observe the return of Shoaib Bashir, who has probably played more hours for his country than his county!
The pre-season has seen its usual messy news of international signings being withdrawn by their international Boards or pulling out for personal reasons, with a rash of last-minute signings. Cricket Australia’s orders to Lancashire to restrict Nathan Lyon to seven appearances were already controversial and we await to hear whether CA deem his one delivery faced and two overs bowled at a soggy Old Trafford constitute one of those permitted. It could keep the lawyers busy.
The weather certainly kept the groundstaff busy this week. After one of the wettest winters in living memory, more rain washed out two fixtures entirely: at Derby and Chester-le-Street. Worcestershire’s New Road has pretty much been swallowed up by the River Severn on a permanent basis so it was a good job that their opener against neighbours Warwickshire took place at Edgbaston. Three innings were played but Monday’s weather robbed the home side of the opportunity to whack it around for an unlikely victory. Worcester’s Pakistani batsman Kashif Ali, in only his ninth first-class match, notched both his first and second centuries, but all to no avail.
As in 2023, Essex registered a first-game success. This year’s came at Trent Bridge, where a Joe Clarke ton enabled Nottinghamshire to claim a narrow first-innings lead despite a Sam Cook hat-trick. However, on the final two days, it all went pear-shaped. A solid batting performance down the order put Haseeb Hameed’s side under pressure, then Sam Cook did the rest, putting Notts to the sword with 6-14. Could he earn an England call-up? I doubt it. Not unless he takes another ten-for at The Oval or Lord’s! So a good start for Essex, but their points haul could be all but wiped out should they be punished for Khushi’s bat being too big!
The latter looks unlikely. When Middlesex hosted Glamorgan in Division Two, only fifteen wickets fell across all four days which featured few interruptions. Some may blame the Kookaburra ball but the Lord’s pitch must have been the softest of feather-beds because various all-time run records were ripped up. Glamorgan skipper Sam Northeast, never one to ease up after reaching three figures, stroked his way to an unbeaten 335, unbelievably the highest individual score ever seen at this ground in over 200 years and some 70,000 innings. Ably supported by Colin Ingram, he declared with the fourth wicket stand one shy of 300.
Yet the game wasn’t over. In reply, Middlesex were less cavalier in their approach and proceeded to torture the Glammy attack for more than two days. Ryan Higgins, in particular, cashed in with his maiden double-hundred before being stumped by Chris Cooke on 221. The county were finally bowled out for 655, their second highest in history. Reader, it ended as a draw.
Elsewhere, Somerset scooped the most bonus points at Canterbury, but old-timers Bell-Drummond and Denly eased heir way to centuries second time around. Like the April sun, champions and hot favourites Surrey had little chance to shine at Lancashire, although Cameron Steel polished off the home team’s tail very cheaply. New boy Dan Lawrence also claimed four wickets but didn’t get a chance to bat.
In the second tier, Sussex were deprived of a likely victory by bad light at Hove. Opener Tom Haines (133) and some vibrant late-order hitting earned them a lead of 107, before James Coles and Ollie Robinson tormented the Northants batters. The ever-reliable Procter, Keogh and McManus dug in to prevent Sussex having a chance to knock off a few runs before the weather closed in.
The forecast is not brilliant for the next round of fixtures, either but, with Surrey, Essex and Hampshire all at home in the South-East, they have the best chance of securing a result, although respective opponents Somerset, Kent and Lancashire will aim to come out on top.
Team of the Week:- Lyth
(Yor), Haines (Sus), Kashif Ali (Wor), Northeast (Gla), Clarke (Not +), Ingram
(Gla), Higgins (Mid), Coles (Sus), Steel (Sur), Mike (Lei), Cook (Ess)
