County Championship 2026

[andy]

Haven't seen any of it...typical flat Surrey wicket?

[Durhamfootman]

if it is, then Sussex are batting dreadfully

4 down and with Haines also having retired hurt first ball

at least any replacement ought to be straight forward for once, should they need to do it

[Durhamfootman]

Ben Sanderson has just run through Worcs in double quick time

Worcs lost their last 8 wickets for 26 runs in 13 overs

Durham-esque

[sussexpob]

Haven't seen any of it...typical flat Surrey wicket?

As I explained/predicted on Day 1, the pitch was so green you couldn't even distinguish it from the outfield on day one. Pitches with so much live grass quickly accumulate a layer of dead plant matter, which numbs the ball off the pitch and takes any pace or bounce out of it. The problem is, when the ball is still new that seam will still dig into that layer and go all over the place.

The results speak for themselves. About 600 runs scored by bowlers over 3 days, followed by an opening batsman nearly being decapitated by a length ball that smashed him on the temple.

I'd have packed up and gone home when Haines got hit. This pitch is not professional standard.... I hope he's ok, but he looked like he didn't know where he was, guessing he is concussed.

[sussexpob]

if it is, then Sussex are batting dreadfully

Surrey have had all the luck while the ball has been new. Our opener gets something unplayable and ends in hospital, their openers were equally clueless but countless edges flew over slips or bounced before fielders and they some how managed to cling on.

Of course, terrible umpiring helps also. Sibley was stonecold lbw on 1, hit him below the knee roll on middle stump. He had another 50-50 go his way also.

On the counter, Simpson was given out caught at first slip to a ball he missed by a country mile. I guess the umpire didn't notice the keeper fluffed the catch and pushed to slip, and not the fact he edged it.

Like at Yorkshire, the umpiring has been woeful....unlike at Yorkshire, its gone all one way... to the richest, most popular, well supported team. Sure that doesn't factor.

[DiligentDefence]

Ben Sanderson has just run through Worcs in double quick time

Worcs lost their last 8 wickets for 26 runs in 13 overs

Durham-esque

It was a superb spell, consistently top of off doing a tiny bit. An all round excellent performance by Northamptonshire bar the dropped catch early on in Worcestershire's 10th wicket partnership.

[Durhamfootman]

It's all old boys at the top of the wicket takers list

Ben Sanderson (37) 25 wickets at 15.92
Jimmy Anderson (143) 23 wickets at 15.65
Ben Raine (34) 21 wickets at 15.47 and the chance to add to that tally tomorrow

I shouldn't imagine that any of them are particularly quick these days, BR certainly isn't, but there's a lot to be said for bowling accurately and consistently asking questions of the batters

[sussexpob]

Meanwhile, Lawrence Booth posts in the Daily Mail that the 11 non-hundred hosting counties have been having secret meetings about taking action, claiming that the English County Cricket Civil War is about to begin. Counties obviously have numerous complaints about the inequality of the current system, which is quite simply a shambles.

When the ECB announced their plans for the hundred, they certainly never were upfront with how this would all work. The earliest indications were that it would be far more disproportional to the counties not benefitting from Franchises, and the key to that being that the ECB would not just give the Franchise away! But in reality, not only did the 49% split between the 18 counties plus MCC drastically cut more towards the host counties ( the eventual calculation would represent a reduction of about 9 million per non-host county/boost to hosts), but the hosts inexplicably received about 80% of the share from these sales DESPITE the fact they also received 51% of the overall value for free.

Take Yorkshire for instance. They sold all of their Franchise instantly to the Sun Group, and in doing so generated 50 million quid extra on an asset that they had never had any role or investment in. They, quite literally, received a gift and had the person who gave them that gift auction it for millions of quid. How exactly on God's Green Earth is that fair? The case gets even sticker when the ECB gave that asset to its former CEO, who in turn will be using the money to, er, pay what the club owes to himself. Great optics isn't it? Oh and wait, this is the county that only a couple of years ago brought scandal onto our game as was supposed to be punished by the ECB by not getting any sweet extras....

As a Sussex fan, it makes me gargle with anger that so many counties risked financial ruin to build unsustainable revenue projects, and those projects have ended up being successes based on being given handouts. Lancashire and Yorkshire were in dire financial troubles, now they are grand. And Sussex, who have been a model of financial responsibility for decades, then get painted as some reckless spenders because the ECB took all our revenue streams so Franchises owned by our surrounding rival counties can steal our fans in the most profitable part of our season, all while being given a total of 275 million freebie cash we haven't in order to do so.

I have no doubt that the ECBs desire it to kill the 11 non-host counties. How else can their position be justified? The ECB owe us 24 million pounds, and forced us to loan a million of them because they wont give us it - the interest on that 24 million is more than the loan we received, so we are not even allowed to benefit from the maturity of the money sitting in their bank. We are told that the ECB want counties to use it for worthwhile projects - Well my Dear ECB n8bheads, the only worthwhile thing counties can afford nowadays it to scrap for their very existence. It says a lot that you do not believe this worthwhile.

While we are at it, lets talk about things "worthwhile". As you wont actually pay us the money you owe us for taking our players to your giant turd of a competition, then what exactly is worthwhile to us in this arrangement? Its worthwhile to give our talent to an Indian IPL team to use for the few weeks in a year we used to make money in? Sorry, but you don't get to go in a shop, take what you want, then tell the shop-keeper his fetish for sex-dolls isnt a worthwhile hobby, so you will keep his money in your pocket.

No, if you want to buy something, then you F****** damn well pay for it.

I am totally done with this. If its Civil War, then fine lets do it. All non-host counties should refuse to release THEIR assets until they get THEIR money, and until the ECB agree to a future funding arrangement that ensure EVERY single county gets 100% EQUAL pay from the sale of this franchises.

In fact, I will right to the board of my club and inform them if they do not take a stand, I will cancel my membership. Whats the point anyway? I will only have it for 2 more years at this rate, and I have no inclination to pay a dime to the "South Coast Seagull 20 Superkings"

[bigfluffylemon]

That Anderson guy looks a bit good. Maybe England should consider him?

[Arthur Crabtree]

Somerset still favourites, but Yorkshire digging theor way back into the game in the fourth innings.

[Durhamfootman]

great start for Yorks defending 260

Somerset 3 down for 43 with Rew departing for 2

[Durhamfootman]

Sussex are going to need heroics from Carson and Robinson again to save this one

Leics and Hants are both toast

Perhaps this will finally be the year that Hants go down..... unless they get saved again by ECB intrigue or batting incompetence

[Durhamfootman]

Leics and Hants are both toast

as are Derbys

Durham need another day

[Arthur Crabtree]

I'd have packed up and gone home when Haines got hit. This pitch is not professional standard.... I hope he's ok, but he looked like he didn't know where he was, guessing he is concussed.

Doesn't seem to have been subbed.

[Arthur Crabtree]

great start for Yorks defending 260

Somerset 3 down for 43 with Rew departing for 2

After his big ton in the first innings, 21 year old Josh Thomas' start looks ominous. But the game is interestingly poised.