With more of a sparkle in its eye than for years, the County Championship shimmies into life on Good Friday, coat done up, gloves fastened.
After years of wrangling, the schedule has been settled (for now), and the three-year Kookaburra ball trial, which had seam bowlers weeping into their Weetabix, dumped, but there is still place for a regulatory tweak, and it’s a substantial one. This year, the England and Wales Cricket Board is trialling substitutes, allowing a player to be replaced by a fully playing sub, rather than just a covering fielder. And the terms of reference have broadened too: the system will cover sickness and significant life events – such as the birth of a child or a family illness – as well as injury.
“Most seasons we get three or four questions about a player being replaced to witness the birth of a child,” said Alan Fordham, the ECB’s head of cricket operations, “and the answer has been no. Now the answer will be yes.
“There are also unexpected life events. There was the incident around Blair Tickner, whose wife was taken ill during the game. It was a tough message to say: ‘Sorry, you can’t have a replacement player, you have to play with 10.’” In 2024, the New Zealander found out his wife had been diagnosed with leukaemia during a match and played on rather than leaving Derbyshire a man short.
The change in regulations has come about because the International Cricket Council asked countries to trial the scheme in their domestic competitions, before possibly bringing a similar rule into Test cricket. By permitting replacements for illness or life events, the ECB has gone further than authorities in India, Australia or South Africa.
Replacements will have to be like for like and, in order to try to prevent any funny business, any player replaced for illness or injury, will have to serve an eight-day “stand down period”. This has not totally convinced everyone. Derbyshire’s head coach, Mickey Arthur, is supportive but wary.
“There are lots of little areas open to manipulation,” he said. “The eight-day break doesn’t take bye weeks into consideration. Or the last game of the season. Or your red-ball bowlers going into the white-ball season.”
The ECB says it is alert to any mischief.
After an Ashes winter England want to wipe from the database, the Championship feels like it has renewed importance. Rob Key, the managing director, has indicated that England players are no longer shoo-ins, and the ECB hierarchy appear to be working hard to reconnect with disillusioned county coaches and players.
Brendon McCullum, the England head coach, was on message during a Zoom call to the counties early on Wednesday evening, stressing how much his setup values the championship. He reiterated the sort of players England are looking for – good against high pace and spin – as well as (re)introducing Troy Cooley, the bowling whisperer for the 2005 Ashes squad, now back with the ECB as the pace-bowling lead.
Ben Stokes has backed McCullum up, stressing that there are England places up for grabs. The Test captain said: “I think it’s a great opportunity for a lot of people around the country … The first six or seven weeks of championship cricket I think it’s going to be a very big one and people should use that as an opportunity to push their case as far forward as they possibly can. I hope they’re giving themselves the best chance of coming up for selection when we get together to do that.”
And there does seem to be a genuine enthusiasm around the grounds. At Cardiff, where Glamorgan are in Division One for the first time since 2005, the mood is buoyant. Kiran Carlson, Glamorgan’s captain, is ready to “show England and the England management how good we are” and keen to play two spinners, even against the big boys. Lancashire, down in Division Two, are firing for promotion, despite the late withdrawal of Mitch Perry. Surrey, Notts and Warwickshire count their heavy artillery while players such as Haseeb Hameed, Dom Sibley, Asa Tribe and James Coles dream.
Even the most forlorn – promoted Leicestershire, whose spring has been dogged with injury and the late withdrawal of their captain, Peter Handscomb, and Sussex, docked 12 points before the season has even begun – have everything in front of them. They meet on Friday at Grace Road, one of a full set of nine games. Bring it on.
