A dozen Australians hit the fields around the UK in the first round of the County Championship
Division One
Sean Abbott – Surrey
1-74 (25)
40
A favourite of Surrey, Sean Abbott returns to the successful county once again and made a decent start to the 2026 season.
His first-innings 40 was crucial in helping Surrey recover from 6-65 before the game became extremely batter-friendly.
He bowled 25 overs in Warwickshire’s massive first-innings 544, taking 1-74 which included the wicket of opener Rob Yates (70).
Ryan Hadley – Glamorgan
3-52 (15) & 3-35 (14.4)
An excellent start from New South Wales quick Ryan Hadley who grabbed three wickets in each innings of Glamorgan’s draw with Yorkshire in Cardiff.
The 27-year-old, who had somewhat of a breakthrough Aussie summer, was given new-ball duties for his new side and while he took his wickets later in the innings, he was one of his side’s most economical bowlers.
Hadley, combined with teammate leg-spinner Mason Crane, took 14 of the 17 Yorkshire wickets to fall in a great sign for his suitability to UK conditions.
Daniel Hughes – Sussex
19 & 72
After losing his NSW contract and not featuring at all in this summer’s Sheffield Shield, 37-year-old Daniel Hughes returns as opener with Sussex and made a bright start in a big win over Leicestershire.
Hughes struck nine fours and two sixes before he was bowled by England spinner Rehan Ahmed.
Jake Lehmann – Hampshire
34 & 9
The two-time Sheffield Shield winner began his two-year contract with Hampshire in a disappointing innings defeat to Essex.
Lehmann’s 34 was his side’s second-highest score in the first dig but he fell to England Test aspirant Sam Cook in the second innings for nine.
Beau Webster – Warwickshire
53
0-42 (10) & 0-17 (10)
It was a run-fest at Edgbaston to open Warwickshire’s season and Beau Webster was able to profit with a half-century to begin his campaign.
The Test allrounder hit seven fours in his 53 as his side piled on 544 in the draw with Surrey.
He was potentially under-bowled in both innings, bowling only 10 in each, but that may have been for management purposes given he had just finished a big season for Tasmania.
Jake Weatherald – Leicestershire
83 & 34
An excellent start for Australia’s Test opener who came really close to a century on county debut. Weatherald hit his first ball for four through the covers and would hit 13 in his innings of 83.
Only chopping onto his own stumps off former England seamer Ollie Robinson could prevent Weatherald from reaching three figures.
Chasing an unlikely 481 in the final innings, Weatherald again came out with aggression but eventually fell for 31 off 35 balls.
Sam Whiteman – Yorkshire
48 & 24
The Western Australia captain made a solid start to his career as a local player in county cricket, coming within a whisker of a fifty on Yorkshire debut.
Whiteman hit nine fours in his 54-ball innings but was lbw to leg-spinner Mason Crane who grabbed five for the innings and eight for the match.
Batting at No.3, Whiteman scored 24 in the fourth innings as the chase ended in a draw.
Division Two
Cameron Bancroft – Gloucestershire
6 & 0
A tough start to the 2026 campaign for Gloucestershire and captain Cameron Bancroft as they endured an innings defeat to Middlesex at Lord’s.
Bancroft was out bowled in both innings and was out in single figures both times he batted. However, the WA opener hit 796 runs in his previous campaign with the county and has several UK hundreds to his name so will be looking to bounce back quickly.
Gabe Bell – Gloucestershire
1-68 (26)
The Tasmanian seamer made his county debut for Gloucestershire at cricket’s most famous venue but it was a convincing loss to Middlesex at Lord’s.
Bell only bowled once and took the wicket of Ryan Higgins to get his season tally underway.
Harry Conway – Northamptonshire
2-94 (25) & 4-38 (13)
20 & 5
It was a great all-round season opener for Harry Conway in his second season for Northamptonshire.
The NSW seamer took six wickets for the match, including four in the second innings, but also contributed twice with the bat.
In the first innings, Conway lasted 71 balls at No.11 to combine for a 60-run partnership with Lewis McManus to whittle away at Lancashire’s big lead. In the second innings, he was brought up to be the nightwatcher and successfully saw his side through to stumps on day three. Ultimately, his time at the crease proved crucial as Northants hung on for a draw with one wicket in hand.
Last season Conway played four matches, taking 20 wickets at an average of 20.75.
Caleb Jewell – Derbyshire
56
Tasmanian opener Caleb Jewell picked up where he left off in 2025 with a half-century for Derbyshire, this time in a draw against Worcestershire.
Jewell hit 1005 runs (with one century and nine half-centuries) in last season’s UK campaign and hit another 10 boundaries in his 110-ball knock in the season opener.
But, as the Pears were made to follow on, that was Jewell’s only hit of the encounter.
Nathan McSweeney – Northamptonshire
32 & 6
Making his county cricket debut, Nathan McSweeney couldn’t get a score as his Northamptonshire barely hung on for a draw against James Anderson’s Lancashire.
Although the South Australia skipper got a start in the first innings and faced 44 balls in the second innings, he was unable to go big.
Australians in the 2026 County Championship
Derbyshire: Caleb Jewell
Glamorgan: Nathan McAndrew (June)
Gloucestershire: Cameron Bancroft, Gabe Bell (first six matches), Liam Scott (June)
Hampshire: Jake Lehmann
Lancashire: Marcus Harris, Mitch Perry (April-May only)
Leicestershire: Peter Handscomb, Jake Weatherald
Northamptonshire: Nathan McSweeney, Harry Conway (first two months only)
Nottinghamshire: Fergus O’Neill (April-June only)
Surrey: Sean Abbott (first half of season)
Sussex: Daniel Hughes
Warwickshire: Beau Webster (first half of season)
Yorkshire: Jhye Richardson (until mid-May)
