Six more counties will play their red ball cricket in Group 2 of the County Championship and there are some big hitters among them. The top two from the Group will go into Division One of the competition in the latter stages so a good battle should ensue from it.
Here is our county-by-county guide to the six teams in Group 2:
Gloucestershire
Last Season: 5th in Central Group
Captain: Chris Dent
Overseas Player(s): Kraigg Brathwaite, Dan Worrall
Key Players: James Bracey & Ryan Higgins
One to Watch: Tom Lace – movement from Middlesex to Gloucestershire worked well for Ryan Higgins and George Scott and Lace will be hoping to have a similar impact.
Title Odds: 28/1 BetVictor
Gloucestershire made it to finals day in the T20 competition last summer (if October can be described as summer!) but the red ball competition never really got going for them, albeit they were in a tough section from the outset. They will be a little more comfortable in this section and they fact they have recruited West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite for the first half of the season shows some intent under new coach Ian Harvey.
Gloucestershire are always a side who will be competitive in the white ball formats with them playing their home conditions so well but if the likes of Chris Dent, James Bracey and Ryan Higgins show up with big red ball campaigns then there is no reason why they can’t surprise one or two sides, particularly if winter additions Tom Lace and Jared Warner prove to be smart additions to the bowling attack.
Hampshire
Last Season: 4th in South Group
Captain: James Vince
Overseas Player(s) Kyle Abbott, Mohammad Abbas (April-May)
Key Players: Sam Northeast & Kyle Abbott
One to Watch: Joe Weatherley – he’s been around the Hampshire XI for long enough now to impose himself as the opener the Ageas Bowl outfit have been craving since the departures of Michael Carberry and Jimmy Adams.
Title Odds: 12/1 General
Hampshire never really got going in the four day competition last season for a number of reasons. A couple of key injuries certainly didn’t help their cause, neither did quarantine issues and players not making it over from overseas due to Covid-19. If that wasn’t enough their home ground was out of use as England had it for the summer so there is a huge natural improvement in Hampshire, but they will need it if they are going to challenge for the top division in the latter part of the summer.
Getting Kyle Abbott back for the season was a big move and the early season acquisition of Mohammad Abbas looks big with Fidel Edwards no longer available. Liam Dawson coming back from injury will help as well. If England don’t require the services of James Vince as much this summer then Hampshire have the tools to be competitive but any significant injuries will have them targeting the white ball competitions for success this term.
Leicestershire
Last Season: 5th in North Group
Captain: Colin Ackermann
Overseas Player(s): Marcus Harris, Naveen Ul Haq (T20 Blast only)
Key Players: Hassan Azad & Marcus Harris
One to Watch: Harry Swindells – the keeper-batsman has a big reputation at Grace Road and a key knock against Notitinghamshire did his stock no harm. He’ll be looking to impose himself more this season.
Title Odds: 66/1 BetVictor & William Hill
Leicestershire have offered a lot more than they have delivered in four-day cricket over recent times. Paul Nixon has now put together a squad which individually has the talent to deliver wins at this level but now the consistency needs to be added to it. There is a feeling in the county game that Marcus Harris could be a tremendous overseas capture and if he can inspire some talented batsmen to deliver the goods it would be a huge lift for the Foxes.
You sense Leicestershire will continue to target the T20 competition, which has been their modus operandi for a while, but even despite the loss on Tom Taylor to Northamptonshire they have the skills with the ball to support those batsmen if they can stand up and be counted. I think it is asking too much for them to make the top division after the first stage but they could take a scalp or two down with them.
Middlesex
Last Season: 3rd in South Group
Captain: Peter Handscomb
Overseas Player(s): Peter Handscomb
Key Players: Nick Gubbins & Tim Murtagh
One to Watch: Blake Cullen – if Michael Atherton says this lad has something about him then you’ve got to think there is a star waiting to shine. His progress this season could be worth following.
Title Odds: 12/1 General
Middlesex have flattered to deceive in red ball cricket in recent times, frustratingly so you would have to say. I don’t think it helps them playing at Lord’s where the wickets don’t break up all that much and results are hard to come by. They will be helped a little more this year after the plea of Joe Root for better pitches and rewards for those pitches was answered but they’ll still be vulnerable to teams who play on result wickets, of which many will still exist.
Peter Handscomb has been brought in to install a winning mentality to proceedings and a side that has the likes of Sam Robson, Steven Eskinazi, Nick Gubbins, John Simpson and Handscomb himself with the bat as well as a bowling attack picking from James Harris, Toby Roland-Jones, Steven Finn, Tom Helm and Tim Murtagh, the Seaxes have the personnel to go deep in the competition this term, if they can find a way to eek out wins at home.
Somerset
Last Season: 1st in Central Group – beaten BWT finalists
Captain: Tom Abell
Overseas Player(s): Marchant de Lange
Key Players: Tom Lammonby & Jack Brooks
One to Watch: Will Smeed – was smacking it everywhere by the end of the T20 group stage and he has announced his intention to play all three formats. If he gets in this season he looks extremely talented.
Title Odds: 7/1 General
Somerset have been the closest challengers to Essex in this format of the game for a while but getting their hands on the County Championship remains elusive and will be the main focus for the season. Last year allowed Somerset to blood a lot of young talent and much of it delivered the goods at time. Those who were previously tried are now coming into the prime of their career and with a nice blend of experience around them, Somerset look primed for another huge run.
The problem with success comes international attention and with Jack Leach almost certain to be spending much of the summer with England, and the likes of Tom Banton, Lewis Gregory, Craig Overton and Ollie Sale all on the fringes of contention the fear is that England could disrupt them. Somerset also begin the season on -8 points after being punished for a bad pitch two seasons ago so that may not help them either in what is a very competitive group.
Surrey
5th in South Group
Captain: Rory Burns
Overseas Player(s): Kemar Roach, Hashim Amla, Sean Abbott (early season and T20)
Key Players: Hashim Amla & Rikki Clarke
One to Watch: Dan Moriarty – made a huge impression in 2020 and if there is no second season syndrome then England honours could come along at some point in 2021.
Title Odds: 12/1 Sky Bet
The red ball season never got up and running for Surrey last year. It wasn’t helped by Michael Di Venuto suddenly deciding to leave his post a year early on the horizon of the campaign. Vikram Solanki has had long enough in the coaching post to get his ideas across and he certainly doesn’t lack for talent at his disposal, although inevitably the IPL and England internationals will guarantee that those available to him changes regularly.
If the likes of Hashim Amla and Mark Stoneman can have big seasons and players such as Jason Roy, Rory Burns and the Currans deliver when they are available, Surrey can certainly have an improved season but getting 20 wickets still could be an issue and this is a loaded group so the Brown Caps will need to be at their best to get anything out of the campaign. White ball success might be their best chance of silverware.
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