The county championship started today and unusually crowds had glorious sunshine to enjoy rather than arctic rain. Last year Durham were unable to play on the opening day because the Riverside was under two feet of snow. This year, however, the ECB have got away with starting the season ridiculously early. I wonder if their future scheduling is dependent on accelerated global warming? I wouldn’t be surprised if Giles Clarke has ploughed all his money into Haliburton.
Usually I look forward to the start of the domestic season. There’s something comforting about checking all the scores on teletext in the evening – and seeing who my team Worcestershire have lost to on that particular day. I also love playing The Telegraph’s Fantasy League game. It’s a nice distraction and an enjoyable way to keep tabs on all of England’s up and coming youngsters – some of whom now seem young enough to be my grandson.
However, this year it all feels rather different. I’m feeling quite apathetic to be honest. I think it’s because we’ve had cricket on TV all winter. As soon as the 2010 domestic season ended, the Ashes build-up began. Then we had the main event itself – after which everything else has seemed like an anti-climax. And of course, the World Cup has only just finished. I look forward to beginning of the county season every year because it’s like saying hello to a friend you haven’t seen for a while. This time our buddy ‘cricket’ hasn’t really been away.
Last year we did a humorous County Championship preview for division one and two. I’m afraid I can’t be bothered to write one this year. It’s because I’m not really excited – and I doubt you are either. I’ll still keep tabs on the scores every evening and let you know if something exciting happens (like whether David Lloyd actually gets into a hot-tub with the young ladies he ogles during T20 matches), but a thorough preview is probably a waste of time.
There’s no hiding from the fact that last year we got things terribly wrong any way – so it’s a good thing we tipped India to win the World Cup or we would have lost all credibility. Durham didn’t retain the championship. Instead they played like the north-eastern weather i.e. they were terrible.
Meanwhile, Worcestershire didn’t get the wooden spoon in division two. Somehow, they got promoted despite releasing all their best players over the winter and recruiting a selection of club cricketers, a guy from grade cricket down under (we’re not sure which grade), and a local schoolboy who couldn’t play until July because he was doing his A-levels – or was it his eleven plus?
Of course, the problem with predicting who will win the various county competitions is the ridiculous turnover of overseas players. Some foreign stars turn up for a couple of weeks at the start of the season then buggar off to play some meaningless ODI series. Others signings are made in a blaze of publicity but then get injured and are replaced.
Meanwhile, some counties seem to have a revolving door policy which enables them to field a new overseas recruit every week. It’s impossible to keep up. Worcestershire still don’t know whether Saeed Ajmal, the Pakistani spinner, will be able to fulfil his contract for the second half of the season. It all depends whether the PCB sanction the deal and allow him to play. If he can’t make it, I assume some random Bangladeshi will take his place. It’s a nightmare.
What we can predict, however, is which players could make a big impact this summer and find themselves on the cusp of international selection. The batsman I will be keeping an eye on is Leicestershire’s James Taylor, who has already scored nearly 3,000 championship runs at an average of 47 despite being just twenty one years old. Of the young bowlers, Hampshire’s left arm spinner Danny Briggs looks interesting. He did ok with the England Lions this winter, and he’s taken 75 wickets at an average of 29 so far in his first class career. The lad is just nineteen (almost twenty). Could this be a future England spin twin for Graeme Swann?
It’s also a big year for Adil Rashid. We all desperately want England to unearth a world class leggie, and Rashid is the best prospect we’ve had for years. Strauss and Flower thought he was a little immature last year, but he’s done some growing up this winter. He performed well in Australia’s domestic T20 competition and finished as the Redbacks leading wicket taker. He also bowled well for the Lions in the Caribbean. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that he’s still only 23. He also has a first class batting average of 37. Not bad eh.
Let us know which players you’re expecting to top the averages and possibly earn an England call-up. And if you’ve got any idea who’s going to win the championship (perhaps you’ve got a mate who works in immigration) please let us know.
James Morgan
