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Times
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Times
Surrey demolish Yorkshire as leaders Notts suffer first defeat
Before his reintroduction this month, Jason Roy had not played a red-ball match for Surrey for five years. Though part of the furniture at the Oval since his teens, he has experienced an outsider's view of Surrey's relentless red-ball excellence. In the past fortnight he has been a part of it. Speaking after Monday's innings and 28-run trouncing of Yorkshire, which pushes Surrey to within three points of early championship pace-setters Nottinghamshire, who were beaten by Durham by seven wickets in an exciting finale at Chester-le-Street, Roy said his county's standards of preparation and creation of a winning culture had sky-rocketed during his absence from the red-ball game. England's explosive former white-ball opener, with 12 one-day international hundreds and 180 limited-overs matches across both formats, has played in Surrey's past two championship games after a previous red-ball appearance for his county back in the Bob Willis Trophy in 2020. That, moreover, was Roy's only four-day outing since earning his five Test caps in the Ashes summer of 2019. • England vs Zimbabwe Test: live score and updates from day two 'I've been incredibly impressed with the set-up here now for red-ball cricket, and how far the club has gone in five years,' Roy, 34, said. 'It is especially the rehab and conditioning work that goes on behind the scenes, the improved facilities and the work of the whole support staff — led by Gareth Batty and Rory Burns as head coach and captain. 'But it's also the environment here. We've seen in the past fortnight how our two new overseas players, Nathan Smith and Kurtis Patterson, have fitted in so quickly and seamlessly. And it's the way we train now for red-ball matches. The focus is always there, and absolutely no one takes playing for this great club for granted. Every individual is trying to get their game to the next level, and the environment really encourages that.' Outgunned Yorkshire were finished off clinically on Monday morning, dismissed for 229 after resuming on 185 for six. Jordan Clark's four for 45 gave him seven wickets in the match, with Tom Lawes picking up three for 47 and six overall. Jonny Bairstow added just 13 to his overnight 64 before being bowled by a Ryan Patel off-cutter — occasional seamer Patel's first wicket of the season. 'Surrey's squad have so many moving parts, with players either away with England or at the IPL or other franchises,' Anthony McGrath, Yorkshire's head coach, said. 'But they never let up and all their players — look at Patel with that wicket — keep contributing. That's why they are so successful.' Durham, meanwhile, successfully chased down a fourth-innings target of 91 in 18 overs with ten balls to spare and Colin Ackermann biffing 53 not out, after earlier bowling out Nottinghamshire for 347 in a memorable, high-scoring contest. Old Trafford (final day of four): Lancashire (13pts) drew with Derbyshire (11pts) The idea of left-arm spinners bowling over the wicket to right-handed batsmen is now regarded as a valuable option in red-ball cricket, particularly when fielding sides are struggling to make a breakthrough. This was not always the case. Nearly half a century ago, Mike Brearley had to convince a deeply reluctant Derek Underwood of the tactic's possibilities, although Underwood was as delighted as ever when Greg Chappell made room to cut a ball slanted slightly across him and was bowled in the 1977 Old Trafford Test. Memories of that triumph were recalled on the same ground on Monday when the left-arm spinner Tom Hartley took two vital wickets as Lancashire pressed for their first Championship victory of the season. That venture ended in disappointment when Anuj Dal and Jack Morley blocked out the final 11 overs, three of them bowled by James Anderson, to secure a deserved draw for their side. The result leaves Lancashire still winless after six games, while Derbyshire remain in second place in the Division Two table, 30 points behind the leaders Leicestershire. In other words, the season is unfolding just as nobody at all predicted. But the day could have been even more disappointing for Lancashire. Set to score 329 in a minimum of 88 overs, Derbyshire were going well on 128 for two in the 37th when Wayne Madsen was caught down the leg side off Tom Bailey for 19. Then Hartley struck, bowling Brooke Guest round his legs for two and four overs later having Harry Came caught at short leg by George Bell for 63. Those wickets effectively scuppered the visitors' chances of winning the game but the next two wickets came when Josh Bohannon's occasional off spin accounted for Martin Andersson and Zak Chappell in successive overs. Ben Aitchison was leg before to Bailey for nought and Lancashire took the new ball with eight overs left in the game. But Anderson could not make the breakthrough in his last three overs and finished with figures of 16-8-25-2. The former England bowler had struck first in his fourth over when he dismissed Caleb Jewell for the second time in the match, the Australian playing too soon at a slower ball and chipping a catch to Tom Bailey at mid-on. And after lunch Anderson returned to have David Lloyd lbw for 30, the ball tailing late into pads in familiar fashion.
Telegraph
21-04-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Surrey's rivals have found them out
Surrey's meeting with Sussex limped to a sorry end on Monday afternoon. With the floodlights on, few still in the ground and no prospect of a result, captain Rory Burns bowled his medium-pacers, before Dan Worrall and Dom Sibley had a go at leg spin. The players left the field at 3.25pm and did not return. Burns and his team are seeking to become the first to win four County Championship titles in a row since the 1950s, when their Surrey predecessors won seven on the spin. The result at Hove leaves them with three draws from three matches, which neither represents a disastrous start nor a good one. Bad light stops play with Sussex 132/0. 🤎 | #SurreyCricket — Surrey Cricket (@surreycricket) April 21, 2025 Results elsewhere were kind to Surrey this weekend, with only Essex (against Worcestershire) winning in Division One. Because Nottinghamshire were denied by the weather at Edgbaston and Somerset stalled Hampshire, no team has won more than one game in the top flight this season. Surrey sit seventh, but draws are not to be sniffed at, now they are – ludicrously – worth eight points. They are only 11 points behind the leaders. There has, though, been enough in these three games to worry Surrey supporters that their great run could be coming to an end. They are struggling to take 20 wickets. At this time of year, time lost to the weather is inevitable (especially with overeager umpires), making forcing results harder. But more than that, when they play away from the Kia Oval, opponents now know what conditions to roll out: in early season, slow and very flat. Later in the summer, spin. 'It's what we expected,' said Gareth Batty, Surrey's head coach, of flat surfaces like the one at Hove. 'People started doing it to us at the end of last year. Very flat, docile, placid surfaces. We are a couple of bits of ammunition short because of injury in terms of what would help that process to take 20 wickets. But that is no excuse. We have had our opportunity. We need to play the perfect game to get that result, and we haven't quite done that. The weather has also taken passages of play out that would have helped.' "Some solid performances and probably getting to a nice place where everybody is hitting their straps!" 🗣️ Head Coach Gareth Batty reflects on the four days at Sussex. 🤎 | #SurreyCricket — Surrey Cricket (@surreycricket) April 21, 2025 Surrey were close to the complete county team across their three title wins: a deep batting order filled with England internationals, and a relentless seam attack that just kept coming at you. There has always been a sprinkling of overseas stardust, and each season they have added another class act from a rival: Sibley, Dan Lawrence, Matthew Fisher. Almost every base has been covered, but if there has been one weakness, it has been the absence of specialist, high-class spin. As a player and captain, Batty was a huge proponent of providing opportunities to English spinners. As coach, he has been more pragmatic, seeking to turn hard-hitting batsmen into spinning all-rounders: Will Jacks, Cameron Steel and Lawrence. Specialist spinners Dan Moriarty and Amar Virdi have left in the last two seasons. This has largely worked well, and meant Surrey never sacrifice batting depth. But they lost two matches last season, away at Hampshire and Somerset, on pitches that saw them out-bowled by local spinners such as Liam Dawson and Jack Leach. Spotting what would happen at Taunton, Surrey even parachuted in Shakib Al Hasan, but it was not enough in a classic match. There was the blueprint of how to take on Surrey, and others will follow in the remaining five away matches this season. It is a crying shame that, because of the Championship's ridiculous, inelegant structure that does not see every team play every other team in Division One (a consequence of 10 teams playing 14 matches), Surrey do not have to travel to Taunton this summer. Lawrence has bowled more overs (95.4) than any other Surrey bowler this season, but his six wickets betray the fact that he is not yet threatening when conditions do not suit, and is not yet an all-rounder. Batty was keen to point out that Steel would have played if he was not recovering from an ankle injury. 'The fact we had a leg-spinner was a point of difference last year,' he said. 'We haven't been able to replace that.' In Fisher, they made one excellent signing this winter, but turned down the chance to fix their most glaring issue, spin. Perhaps they will look to bring in another midsummer from overseas, or enter the market this winter. England's Shoaib Bashir is out of contract at Somerset, but a three-match loan at Glamorgan, which ended with a defeat at Lord's on Monday and saw him take two wickets at 152, did not push his county credentials. "It's been a very positive four days for us" John Simpson spoke to @AdrianHarms and @BBCSussex after we picked up a draw against champions Surrey 👌 — Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) April 21, 2025 Surrey's first priority is just playing better. Their seam attack has not been at its best, while there have been minor batting lapses. '[On these pitches] we have to play perfect cricket and we haven't done that,' said Batty. With results hard to come by on the road, the temptation could be to make pitches more juicy at home, but that could backfire with low scores of their own.
The Guardian
03-04-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
‘It's where you make your reputation': County Championship bursts back into life
The cut of the grass, the shine of a boot, the sigh of a drop, the joy of a catch, the crunch of a four, the hope of the spring. Time stealthily gouging out lines, on faces, over scars, around knees. A first season. A last. Here, suddenly, is April, unexpectedly sunny and dry. And with it, 135 years after the first County Championship (minus one year for Covid, four for world war one and six for world war two), the 125th. This summer is the calm before the storm. Think you've read that before? You have. The layout of domestic cricket will change again in 2026 – with it looking likely that the number of Championship games will be reduced to give a bit more breathing space to a four-competition season. What won't happen is a top-down 'imposed' solution like the ill-fated Strauss plan, which was upended by the counties in 2022. But, for now, we know what we've got: 15 rounds, 14 games, 10 Division One counties, eight Division Two counties. Two balls – the Dukes and the Kookaburra (rounds nine-12). One winner. For 2025, as is the recent custom, Surrey start as favourites to collect what would be their fourth Championship in a row. Their squad is a well-oiled machine, deftly coached by Gareth Batty and full of players that either dip in from England duties or purr along just under the radar. A couple of quality overseas players in Kemar Roach and Nathan Smith add a pinch of spice. People also enjoy watching them. More than 65,000 people attended County Championship games at the Oval last year, with 13,706 going through the turnstiles for the midsummer game against Essex, both records for the 21st century. Alec Stewart stepped down as director of cricket at the end of last season, after 11 years in the role. It's safe to say he's still in an adjustment period – no longer at the Oval at 6.30am, but still receiving emails every day. But after 44 years in and around senior cricket he's got a pretty good idea of how the Championship stacks up. 'Without county cricket you won't have an international set up,' he says. 'And the Hundred money will hopefully look after the domestic game for the next 25 years, so long as it is invested wisely. 'Not having all the teams in the first division play each other twice isn't ideal, but the quality is good and, though we don't have England players playing regularly, there are enough very good players coming through. Offer players the Championship or the T20 Cup and 90% would choose to win the Championship, which is a healthy sign. We just need to make sure that we are respecting it in terms of when and how we play it. Every time you play a match it should be an occasion, not here we go again. 'Red ball cricket is still where you make your reputation and where you see great players develop. The easy option is to be a white ball cricketer but that could be a short-term view – one bad franchise competition and you get left out. Whereas if you have the ability to play all formats, you've got something to come back to. I'm really pleased that [Somerset's] Will Smeed has come back to red ball cricket, it's a good example to everyone else that you don't need to make a decision at that young age.' Sign up to The Spin Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week's action after newsletter promotion Anthony McGrath, now head coach at Headingley after being tempted away from Chelmsford, agrees that the Championship hasn't lost its lustre: 'The young boys I've seen at both Essex and Yorkshire are still desperate to play red ball and Test cricket. There is a hell of a lot of money out there, but making your debut for whatever county you're at, I haven't seen that diminish.' McGrath is not the only new coach around. Chris Silverwood replaces him at Essex, Richard Dawson goes to Glamorgan in interim charge, Ian Westwood steps into Mark Robinson's boots at Edgbaston. And two big characters arrive, Darren Lehmann at Northants and Adam Hollioake at Kent. McGrath is thrilled. 'It is brilliant for the County Championship, they're two fantastic people and coaches. Adam was my captain for England Lions when we went to Australia. He has high standards, he'll expect Kent to get going from the start.' On the field, Jimmy Anderson continues to fight the dying of the light, right calf notwithstanding, while his old teammates' sons Rocky Flintoff (Lancashire) and Archie Vaughan (Somerset) dip their toes in the water for a second season. The overseas contingent is strong – to pick two: Kane Williamson at Middlesex and Jaydon Seales returning to promoted Sussex. Spin bowling is still difficult: Amar Virdi has been released by Surrey, while Shoaib Bashir is on loan to Glamorgan. There are Ashes tour places to play for (if England care to glance.) Careers will burst into life, others will fade. And it all starts on Friday.
