The second matches of the 2025 County Championship concluded today (April 12), in another round where several England players were available for selection. Here's how England's incumbents and hopefuls got on.
Tom Banton - 6 & 0
After his record-breaking innings last week, Banton came back down to earth with a bump when he was out for single figures in both of Somerset's innings against Sussex. He managed just six in the first innings as part of a dramatic collapse which saw Somerset slip to 79-7. Banton was then out for a five-ball duck in the second innings.
Jack Leach - 1-11 & 4-167
Leach played a limited role in Somerset's first bowling innings, bowling just four overs but securing the wicket of Jack Carson. He bowled 45 overs in Sussex's huge second-innings total of 501-7 declared, however, returning figures of 4-167.
Ollie Pope - 14 & 65
Following a disappointing start to Surrey's campaign, Pope once again failed to find the right rhythm on day one at The Oval. He was in early after Rory Burns was dismissed in the second over of day one, and nicked to second slip for 14. He was better in the second innings, however, reaching a half-century in the evening of day two before he gloved down the leg side the following morning.
Jamie Smith - 39 & 84
Smith played an attacking innings on the first day of Surrey's fixture against Hampshire, but was caught on the boundary for 39 by Sonny Baker. He reached a half-century in the second innings, but was out before he could reach triple figures, sent back by Baker with the ball this time, for 84.
Sonny Baker - 1-49 & 5-80
The young pace prospect made an impressive first Championship visit to The Oval, taking five wickets in the second innings having worked hard in Surrey's first innings on day one. He struck twice in two balls after a rain delay on the third evening to limit Surrey's hopes of reaching a lead of 400 before their declaration.
Sonny Baker took three wickets on his County Championship debut last week, dismissing Jonny Bairstow twice 🔥
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) April 9, 2025
The 90mph England prospect spoke to @Yas_Wisden before the season about how he uses spreadsheets and notebooks to improve his game 📒
🤝 @remitly pic.twitter.com/3V5iJUmIBp
Sam Cook - 4-44 & 1-66
Cook was impressive in Essex's first away game of the season. He took four wickets in Nottinghamshire's first innings, including two in the first session of the day, also being by far the most economical of the Essex pacers. He also got rid of first-innings centurion Kyle Verreynne in the second innings, but struggled for penetration as Notts batted to a draw.
Jordan Cox - 82
Fresh from his century in the opening round of the season last week, Cox made a strong back-to-back showing as he raced past fifty at Trent Bridge. However, coming back from Tea on 82 on day two, he gloved the first ball of the session down the leg side to the waiting keeper.
Dillon Pennington - 1-91 & 0-21
Pennington took just the one wicket in Notts' first bowling innings and bowled four overs without reward in the second as the game petered out.
Matthew Potts - 1-59 & 3-79, 70
Having made a hugely valuable contribution with the bat in Durham's first innings, scoring 70, Potts' most impactful contribution was with the ball on the final day. With Warwickshire set a target of 339 or the chance to bat out the draw, Potts and Ben Raine reduced them to 90-5 between them, Potts taking two of the wickets. He also bowled a beauty to get the ninth wicket in the fourth innings, opening up the door for Durham to force a victory which they ultimately fell short of by one wicket.
Ben McKinney - 153 & 33
The highly regarded young opener scored a brilliant century in Durham's first innings, staying steadfast at the crease amid a collapse around him. He shared a crucial stand with Potts, and was eventually out for 153.
Jonny Bairstow - 7 & 44*
Bairstow presided over a record win in his second game since taking on the full-time Yorkshire captaincy. Yorkshire beat Worcestershire by 504 runs in the biggest winning margin by runs in the County Championship's history. Bairstow was unbeaten in the middle as the declaration came, hitting a quickfire 44*.
Zak Crawley - 0 & 58
Crawley repeated his poor start last week with another first-innings duck. He was trapped lbw by Toby Roland-Jones after four balls. With Kent set 316 to win in the final innings, however, Crawley made a valuable contribution with 58 off 66 balls before he was bowled by left-arm spinner Zafar Gohar.
Tom Hartley - 3-91, 8 & 1
Back to playing after sustaining an injury with England Lions over the winter, Hartley picked up three wickets in Northants' first innings, bowling 33 overs. He didn't get another opportunity to bowl, however, after Lancashire were made to follow on in response to Northants' 496.
Rehan Ahmed - 13 & 77, 0-27 & 0-43
An unusual move saw Rehan moved up to open for Leicestershire against Derbyshire. While the quirky promotion didn't come off in the first innings, in which Rehan was bowled by Zak Chappell for 13, it was more successful in the second innings, when he scored a rapid 77 which included 14 fours and one six. However, in his 'main' role, Rehan was little used and expensive.
Shoaib Bashir - 2-127
Bashir again struggled for control in the second game of his loan spell at Glamorgan. He conceded his runs at 4.40 an over and took two wickets as Gloucestershire racked up 546. He wasn't required to bowl against after Glamorgan were made to follow on.
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