The boxes of red balls are out again after an 18-day break. On Sunday, Championship cricket resumes while the domestic 50-over game is on hold until 24 July. We are almost at the halfway stage of a season that is in danger of being swamped. At international level, England have been winning too easily and so the headlines are dominated by Roy Hodgson dancing on the touchline after the Euro 2016 victory over Wales, Andy Murray, a smiling Eddie Jones stirring the pot around Oz with England’s rugby team; soon there is the Olympic Games. The doom-mongers are rubbing their hands at the prospect of a field day. How can cricket compete with all this?
It is a fair question, but there remains a seam of supporters, bigger than many surmise, devoted to what is happening around the counties. For many, the championship remains the most important of the competitions, especially if they happen to follow a First Division county.
It is remarkable how intensely the First Division teams value their status. The financial rewards of staying there are minimal, utterly inconsequential compared to football and even rugby. Yet that is the preoccupation of the clubs in Division One. The players also note that runs and wickets there mean more to selectors so that is where the ambitious ones want to play. The championship table hints at the tension. Four points separate the top-four teams. Lancashire, promoted last year, are first; Yorkshire and Durham are second and third and this trio also have a game in hand on their challengers.
Surrey, for all their financial muscle, are propping up the table after their promotion last year, which reinforces the notion that the gap between the divisions keeps widening (despite Lancashire’s success).
This theory is enhanced by the experiences of some players who have stepped up. Jim Allenby has struggled at Somerset while Will Gidman, who could boast Hadlee-type figures when at Gloucestershire, has disappeared from view after moving to Trent Bridge. So, too, has Mark Footitt at Surrey, though this has more to do with injury.
Surrey entertain – what a wonderfully ridiculous old euphemism since they will be determined to make life as uncomfortable as possible for their visitors – Nottinghamshire and are in pursuit of their first win at The Oval, where they have been hampered by injuries to their pace bowlers and a sluggish, draw-inducing pitch.
On Monday, the northern teams lock horns with Yorkshire at Durham and Lancashire at Edgbaston (let’s not quibble, Warwickshire are in the northern divisions of one-day cricket).
In the Second Division, Essex have had a barnstorming start and they have their eyes upon the solitary promotion spot. They are at Grace Road.
Not every county in that division is so focused on championship success. For some, one-day success may be a higher priority. These are early days, but this is reflected by the state of the divisions in both white-ball formats. In the T20 competition, the north division is led by Northamptonshire and Worcestershire, the south by Glamorgan, all Second Division clubs in championship cricket.
In the 50-over divisions, Derbyshire and Worcestershire are at the top, as are Essex, Kent and Glamorgan down south. Here is a shred of evidence of how the First Division counties may be putting more energy and emphasis on the championship, while Second Division sides often take the alternative view.
Specsavers County Championship
Sunday (11am): Division One: The Oval: Surrey v Notts. Division Two: Chelmsford: Essex v Leics. Swalec Stadium: Glamorgan v Kent. Monday (11am): Division One: Riverside: Durham v Yorks. Old Trafford: Lancs v Warks. Division Two: Derby: Derbyshire v Worcs.
