We’re almost a month into the County Championship season – with big scores coming from a plethora of England Test contenders, the international top order picture doesn’t seem to be getting any clearer.
Under-fire opener Zak Crawley has failed to reverse his fortunes in the start of his season with Division Two Kent – notching a lacklustre 27 and 31 in their latest defeat. Ben Duckett, England’s other opener, bettered his first-innings half-century with a much-needed 93 to edge closer to holding on to his berth in the Test side.
Breathing down their necks are an impressive collection of in-form county batters. Wicketkeeper James Rew has caught the eye at No 4 across all three of his Somerset matches, while Emilio Gay is averaging 86 for Division Two Durham – not to mention a return to form for former England internationals Dom Sibley and Dan Lawrence.
Meanwhile, the search for England’s Test spinner continues, with Shoaib Bashir taking wickets for Derbyshire – but perhaps the most touted prospect in Rehan Ahmed has just made a controversial move abroad.
With just over a month to go until England open their summer of Test cricket against New Zealand live on Sky Sports, we take a look at how this month’s county action could affect how their line-up shakes out…
Will England need two new openers?
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Ben Duckett has explained why he plans to implement personal changes in an attempt to prolong his England career
An undercurrent of frustration with Crawley’s international performances has been brewing since his poor Ashes performances during the winter and his County Championship figures so far have done nothing to keep critics at bay.
Crawley is averaging just 19.66, with a high score of 31 across six innings and is surely out of England contention barring a miraculous recovery of form in the month of May.
A similar sentiment seemed to have surrounded Duckett after on and off-field issues surrounded his campaign in Australia, but two impressive innings against Warwickshire have helped push his average up to 45.25, and could help reassure selectors that he is still the right man for the job.
But he will need to keep it up in Notts’ three fixtures before England’s first Test.
Emilio Gay has been knocking on the door after his opening-match 128 for Durham against Kent and a barnstorming 159 not out in his most recent outing against Lancashire as they chased down 336 to win by eight wickets, means his stock is continuing to rise.
He boasts significant experience as a first-class opener, and an impressive 73.36 strike-rate suggests he is compatible with the fast-paced batting style favoured by England head coach Brendan McCullum.
Former England pair Dom Sibley and Dan Lawrence could also hope for a potential return to the fold after notching 101 and 125 respectively for Surrey against Essex – either former international could cause a selection headache and provide England with more top-order options should they keep up a semblance of that form.
Middle order: Is there space for both Rew and Smith?
James Rew was drafted in as cover for an England Test squad last summer
The inclusion of James Rew – currently third in Division One runscoring chart with 337 – has stimulated much of the discussion around England’s potential batting successors.
Rew’s average of 75.07 is bettered only by England’s current wicketkeeper Jamie Smith. The latter’s form will likely keep him in the England squad, creating a conundrum for the selectors to decide what to do with Rew.
The Somerset No 4 has never opened the batting, and faces stiff competition to remove any of an entrenched middle-order comprising Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, and captain Ben Stokes.
But, Rew’s performances have been so impressive that, in the eyes of pundits, he is becoming a must-pick anywhere in the order.
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Speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast, Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain discuss the impact of James Rew in the County Championship and if he is an England Test match candidate
“It’s just getting to that stage where you have to find a way of picking [Rew],” former England captain Michael Atherton said on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast.
“Bethell’s one that came in about at three and has never done it before in first-class cricket. Could you move Bethell up to open and have Rew at three?”
With Rew going from strength to strength, it is becoming harder to envisage a scenario in which he is not involved in some capacity in the England line-up – whether they can start him in a way beneficial to the side, though, remains to be seen.
Who is is contention to be England’s Test spinner?
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Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton discuss who could be England’s leading spinner this summer
The Test winter could not have gone any worse for England’s spinner-in-waiting Shoaib Bashir. A fruitless Ashes tour without a single appearance and a shocking 0-113 outing for the England Lions against Australia A looked to be the nail in the coffin of his England career.
But, at county level, Bashir seems to be regaining some form. He boasts nine wickets in three Championship appearances for new county Derbyshire, including an impressive four-for against Lancashire. But many feel that the spinner would be a beneficiary of a summer away from the international level.
The obvious other option looked to be Rehan Ahmed. The 21-year-old has six wickets for Leicester and wields a significantly higher pedigree with the bat than his compatriot.
But Ahmed has decided to give the next month of red-ball cricket a miss as he heads to play for Dehli Capitals in the IPL. He faces stiff competition to get any action at all.
He is competing with India internationals Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel for a place in the side and risks a month of little action – as opposed to three rounds of County Championship action with Leicestershire – heading into the summer.
The decision compounds a handful of headaches for the England selectors – and underlines how crucial the next three rounds of the County Championship will be.
Latest County Championship results
All matches played Friday April 24 – Monday April 27:
Division One:
Cardiff: Glamorgan 440 (Crane 99, Carlson 95, Dickson 90) & 137-2 (Tribe 67*) drew with Leicestershire 586-7 dec (Tattersall 112, Weatherald 104 ret hurt, Cox 68*).
Trent Bridge: Warwickshire 459 (Barnard 165, Booth 70, Woakes 64, Tongue 5-124) drew with Nottinghamshire 279 & 537-7 dec (f/o) (Hameed 115, Verreynne 115, Duckett 93, Clarke 82; Webster 2-55).
The Oval: Essex 409 (Walter 101) & 302-2 dec (Westley 136, Elgar 107*; Atkinson 1-12) drew with Surrey 472 (Lawrence 125, Sibley 101; Harmer 3-69).
Headingley: Sussex 502 (Simpson 136, Price 93, Haines 64) & 324-8 (Clark 93, Coles 53, Robinson 41*; Root 3-67) drew with Yorkshire 511 (Bean 105, Whiteman 101, Root 96, Coles 3-138).
Division Two:
Derby: Gloucestershire 498 (Hammond 145) & 39-0 beat Derbyshire 281 & 252 (f/o) (Montgomery 74; Bell 3-44) by 10 wickets.
Chester-le-Street: Durham 295 & 336-2 (Gay 159*, Bedingham 129*) beat Lancashire 370 (Harris 146 & 260-9 dec (Coughlin 100*; Raine 3-50) by eight wickets.
