In a rare occurrence, Warwickshire retired six batters to pile on a mammoth total during their pre-season warm-up against Northamptonshire at Edgbaston.
The 2025 County Championship starts on April 4. Ahead of the season, Warwickshire faced Northamptonshire in a two-day warm-up fixture between Tuesday (March 25) and Wednesday (March 26) at the Edgbaston Stadium.
After batting first, the Northants declared their innings for 423-7. The scorecard was dominated by Saif Zaib’s 118-ball 102, studded with 13 fours and three sixes. Opener Luke Procter (80) and Rob Keogh (92) were also among the runs. Among Warwickshire bowlers, Ethan Bamber was the pick of the lot, finishing with 3-69 off his 15 overs.
Jonny Bairstow will lead Yorkshire in the County Championship this season.#CountyChampionship pic.twitter.com/ipIPpF0M4A
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) March 27, 2025
In response, Warwickshire were off to a strong start courtesy of Rob Yates and Alex Davies. While Yates blitzed his way to 72 off 84 deliveries, Davies scored a 101-ball 116, riding on 13 fours and five sixes. Both were retired after that point in their innings.
Overall, Warwickshire tried as many as eight batters to give them game time, retiring six of them. Apart from Yates and Davies, Hamza Shaikh (46 off 73), Sam Hain (63 off 62), Dan Mousley (57 off 54) and Ed Barnard (60 off 66) were called back to the pavilion after spending time in the middle. Wicketkeeper Kai Smith (39* off 46) and Danny Briggs (40* off 44) were at the crease when the match ended in a draw. None of the batters were dismissed as they finished at 504-0 after batting for 90 overs.
Warwickshire's Championship campaign begins against Sussex at Edgbaston on Friday (April 4), while Northamptonshire open their season against Kent at the County Ground on the same day.
