County Cricket Championship 2018 preview: Will Macpherson assesses Surrey, Essex, Middlesex and more

The holders | Essex won the title last year
Stephen Pond/Getty Images
Will Macpherson12 April 2018

The Evening Standard’s cricket correspondent, Will Macpherson, runs the rule ahead of the County Championship season…

Surrey | Oval stage set for Surrey’s little and large double act

It has been a classic Surrey close season: as one international superstar retires in Kumar Sangakkara, another arrives. Enter Morne Morkel. Such is life in south London.

What a signing Morkel could be if Surrey’s support staff can keep his fragile frame fit. He remains a superb bowler - bowing out at No7 in the ICC Test rankings – and the sort who could blow open games on flat Oval pitches. That was Surrey’s greatest problem last year, and he is a signing well suited to solving it. He will ease the load too on Sam Curran, who is still just 19 but has played 120 professional matches already. They will make for an enjoyable little-and-large opening pair.

There were moments this winter, though, when Surrey did not play up to the stereotypes of the big spending south London city boys. When it became clear that Sam Northeast would be leaving Kent, seven Division One sides were in for him, and offering very good money. Surrey were the exception. They chose not to pursue Northeast because of their faith in their own young batsmen: Ollie Pope and Ryan Patel ended 2017 in the first team as teenagers. Pope, especially, seems to have had a productive winter playing in Sydney.

Alec Stewart will not fear selecting either of them, and both will have a part to play in making up for Sangakkara’s runs. His 2017 was silly, really, with almost 1,500 runs in 10 games. He cannot be replaced with just one cricketer; instead, every batsman has to make up the slack themselves, starting with Rory Burns and Mark Stoneman at the top of the order.

Division: One
Last year: Third
Season opener: vs Hampshire at the Oval next Friday 20th
Captain: Rory Burns
Key player: Sam Curran
One to watch: Amar Virdi
Signings: Morne Morkel, Dean Elgar (overseas)

Prediction: Third

Scott Borthwick will improve on a disappointing first season, and the signing of Dean Elgar as overseas player would toughen up the team’s spine. In many ways he is a better fit than Mitchell Marsh, who will join later in the summer when over his injury.

It was only a matter of time before Burns succeeded Gareth Batty as captain, and he will be a popular appointment. When he has stepped in before he has seemed unflustered and, at 27 the time is right. But Burns will want to lose his habit of starting seasons quietly - he needs runs in April, for Surrey’s sake as well as his England ambitions.

Not much change to the playing staff, then, but some interesting additions among the coaches. Vikram Solanki has been promoted to assistant coach, Ryan Sidebottom is on board as a coaching consultant and Chris Taylor, who used to work with England, has been helping out with the fielding. It is a reminder that Surrey are always well resourced, and that they should always compete. Perhaps now is time for a real charge at that first title since 2002.

Essex | Tough ask to match last season’s heroics

Division: One
Last year: Champions
Season opener: vs Yorkshire at Headingley (Friday)
Captain: Ryan ten Doeschate
Key player: Simon Harmer
One to watch: Sam Cook 
Signings: Peter Siddle (overseas),  Matt Coles

Prediction: Champions

The scale of Essex’s achievement last season bears repeating: after six summers out of Division One, as the only promoted team, they went unbeaten, winning 10 of their 14 games to take the pennant with two games to spare.

It was their first title in 25 years, their seventh overall - and their first without Graham Gooch.

They have consolidated this winter, because Essex need only look west to Middlesex to see how perilous life as champions of an eight-team Division One can be. Chris Silverwood left for England and was replaced by his assistant, Anthony McGrath, and Dimitri Mascarenhas, who is already impressing the bowlers.

No one who played last year has left (overseas aside), while Peter Siddle (above, centre right) arrives to provide experience and bustle and Matt Coles brings biff.

Photo: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
(Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

So it is broadly the same personnel charged with repeating last year’s heroics. Then, Jamie Porter was extraordinary, while Simon Harmer was so often the point of difference in a competition short on top class tweak.

The batting looks settled, too. They have experience, right down to No7, where James Foster straps on the pads for another season.

Middlesex | Malan will need Robson’s help to lead Lord’s bounce back

Division: Two
Last year: Div 1, 7th - relegated
Season opener: vs Northants at Lord’s (Friday)
Captain: Dawid Malan
Key player: Toby Roland-Jones
One to watch: Max Holden
Signings: Hilton Cartwright (overseas)

Prediction: Division 2 champions

Relegation has not brought panic in NW8, where Dawid Malan has stepped up as club captain after a brutal winter with England. However, his form in Tests means the county may see less of him.

Malan (below) will miss the opening two games on England’s orders, with early summer specialist Sam Robson stepping up as skipper. Robson may find himself in that role often.

Early on, Robson will open the batting with Max Holden, the promising 20-year-old who spent last season on loan at Northants due to the absence of Nick Gubbins. Gubbins ended his winter in fine form with the Lions and in the North-South series, but now has a hamstring injury.

Photo: Naomi Baker/Getty Images
Naomi Baker/Getty Images

The batting is stretched further by an injury to Eoin Morgan - who, by all accounts, is genuinely keen on playing his first red-ball cricket in three years - but Nick Compton is out of favour.

Hilton Cartwright, the West Australian, has been brought in to bolster the middle order, which should have included Ryan Higgins, who was allowed to join Gloucestershire just when Middlesex should have been backing him.

The seam-bowling stocks should be strong enough to bring promotion: Steven Finn, Toby Roland-Jones, Tim Murtagh, James Harris, Tom Helm and James Fuller is an incredibly deep attack - and the rapid left-armer Tom Barber, who recently broke Morgan’s hand in the nets, is a rising star, too. Middlesex would dearly love Ollie Rayner to recapture his form of 2016, when he was among the best spinners in the country.

They were last in Division Two in 2011 - when their side looked very different indeed. They must adapt fast to the division’s different demands and be ruthless in pursuit of early summer wins. Sort that, and they should be straight back up.

Division One

Lancashire finished second in 2017 and now look even stronger. Their batting is rammed with England hopefuls, including Haseeb Hameed and the new skipper, Liam Livingstone. Aussie Joe Mennie bolsters the bowling.

Hampshire should challenge too, having recruited Hashim Amla and Sam Northeast. Yorkshire finished 2017 poorly, but Che Pujara adds ballast, and seeing more of Gary Ballance is a boon. Somerset have great spirit and, of course, Marcus Trescothick, so should survive.

Nottinghamshire look the better of the promoted teams, with lots of bowling, but Worcestershire have Joe Clarke and Josh Tongue, both on England’s radar.

Division Two

Joining Middlesex in the hunt for promotion will be Warwickshire and Sussex. The Bears have recruited a strong set of players in their early twenties, which should help transition out of the Bell-Trott era, while Jason Gillespie will surely make Sussex stronger - even if they are a bit light on batting. Never, ever rule Northants out either, they came mighty close last year. Mercifully, Durham start on an even footing this year, but have lost another raft of talent. Kent too have shed players, but recruited well (Harry Podmore and Heino Kuhn are clever signings). And could Leicestershire with Michael Carberry as captain start rising? Likely to be nearer the bottom are Glamorgan, Gloucestershire and Derbyshire.

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