The last round of the County Championship before the start of the T20 Blast finished this week, the last chance for England's incumbents and hopefuls to get some red-ball action for almost a month. Here's how they all got on.
Ollie Pope
It was another disappointing outing for Ollie Pope in Surrey's first loss of the season against Hampshire. Pope scored 15 and 21 at the Utilita Bowl, with Surrey bowled out for 127 in the first innings and then 203 in the second to lose by an innings and 278 runs. Since his 196-run epic in England's first Test against India at Hyderabad, Pope has a high score of 63 from 17 professional first-class innings. It's a worrying trend for England going into the summer given Pope's normally dominant outings in the first part of the county season.
Ben Foakes
Ben Foakes was another of Surrey's usually impenetrable batting lineup who succumbed to both spin and pace in Southampton. Foakes fell as one of Kyle Abbott's five victims in the first innings but provided stubborn resistance in the second. He finished unbeaten having scored 19 off 107 balls, but his two and a half hour knock only prolonged an inevitable defeat. Foakes battled a back injury during the game and spent time off the field, giving a chance for Jamie Smith to don the gloves.
Dan Lawrence
Dan Lawrence returned a single figure score in Surrey's first innings, another of Abbott's five-for victims, but counter-attacked in the second to hit a 50-ball 42 before he was bowled by Felix Organ. He also played a part with the ball in Hampshire's only innings, taking the wicket of Fletcha Middleton and getting through 33 overs.
Gus Atkinson
For the second fixture in a row, Atkinson took just one wicket across the match as Hampshire declared on 608-6. Atkinson returned figures of 105-1 off 27 overs, his only wicket being that of Michael Neser. He was also out for two and 12 in each of Surrey's innings.
Jamie Smith
One of several young wicketkeepers touted for a potential Test debut this summer, Smith had a rare quiet outing as Surrey were thrashed by Hampshire. He fell for 18 and 9 across the two innings.
Zak Crawley
Following his double-century last week, Crawley's run of low scores returned against Essex as Kent lost by an innings. The England opener was out for a 12-ball 16 in the first innings as Sam Cook's only scalp, and out for one in the second over of the second innings for one to Shane Snater. Kent were bowled out for 101 in the second innings after following on.
Jordan Cox
A hopeful challenger to England's wicketkeeper spot, Jordan Cox followed-up his century in the previous round with a double. After Essex lost three wickets in the space of 48 runs having made a solid start, Cox took control with a blistering knock, striking 207 off 255 balls including 21 fours and five sixes. He shared a 193-run unbroken stand for the eighth wicket with Snater before Essex declared. The win leaves Essex just two points adrift of table-toppers Surrey as the T20 Blast takes over. Cox is yet to don the gloves in 2024 but is a highly rated prospect, and at 23 is tipped for a future in international cricket either as a specialist batter or a wicketkeeper. He is the highest-scoring Englishman in Division One at the halfway point in the season.
Ben Stokes
Stokes was again impressive with the ball during Durham's thumping win over Somerset. He took four wickets in the first innings as Somerset were bowled out for 171, and another four in the second as they were bowled out for 88. He was, however, out for a six-ball duck in Durham's only innings, the second of Jake Ball's five wickets.
Ollie Robinson (Durham)
Another in the race for the gloves, Robinson scored a brisk 46 the aforementioned low-scoring game at Chester-le-Street.
Jack Leach
In his second match back for Somerset following the knee injury he sustained in India over the winter, Leach only bowled four overs in Durham's only innings. He went for 20 runs without taking any wickets, in an extraordinary match where 265 was enough for Durham to only bat once.
Ollie Robinson (Sussex)
In a high scoring draw at Lord's in which neither side were able to take ten wickets, Robinson returned figures of 1-77. His only wicket was that of Mark Stoneman early in Middlesex's only innings, he even resorted to bowling spin at one point.
Alert. Sussex's Ollie Robinson is bowling spin. pic.twitter.com/9hvV6lSW3q
— Vitality County Championship (@CountyChamp) May 27, 2024
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