Who are the players to watch? Who’s in the squad? What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses? What is the fixture list? Your questions answered
Head coach: James Franklin
Captain: Scott Borthwick
Overseas players: Cameron Bancroft (Australia), David Bedingham (South Africa), Will Young (New Zealand - first three games)
Players in: Scott Borthwick (Surrey), Alex Thomson (Warwickshire, loan)
Players out: James Weighell (released), Ben Whitehead (released), Sol Bell (released), Josh Coughlin (released), Nathan Rimmington (released), Scott Steel (Leicestershire), Gareth Harte (released)
Fixture list: April 8 – Nottinghamshire (a); April 15 – Essex (a); April 22 – Derbyshire (h); April 29 - Warwickshire (h); May 13 – Worcestershire (h); May 20 – Derbyshire (a); May 27 – Essex (h); June 3 – Worcestershire (a); July 4 – Warwickshire (a); July 11 – Nottinghamshire (h)
Remind me what happened last year?
The second year of the new regime under director of cricket Marcus North and head coach James Franklin, Durham began slowly – games against Yorkshire and Lancashire brought disappointing, low-scoring defeats – and it was only in their sixth innings of the Bob Willis Trophy that they reached 300 for the first time.
They improved thereafter, however, claiming successive draws against Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire.
“We need to make sure that we hit the ground running and start playing confident cricket from the start of the season,” North told The Cricketer. “In 2019, we would have been promoted if we didn’t lose out first four games; in the following games, we only lost one of the next 10. That was a bit of a trend, so it’s something we’re working on as a group.”
When the runs did start to flow, Durham had Alex Lees to thank. The former Yorkshire left-hander, who was once tipped for big things by Michael Vaughan and Geoffrey Boycott, lost his way at Headingley before moving further north – a decision that has paid dividends. He churned out 386 runs at 48.25 – only six players made more nationwide, but none perhaps at a ground so reputationally favourable to bowlers as Lees.
North added: “I’ve said it a few times that if this guy has another good season, there’s no reason why he can’t be talked about more seriously at the next level. He’s got a really well-rounded game.”
With the ball, Chris Rushworth did what Chris Rushworth does, leading the attack with a pinpoint precision that led to 16 wickets at 22.37 apiece, including his 500th for Durham. He heads into this season just 22 scalps behind Graham Onions, almost certainly to usurp his former new-ball partner before the end of May as the leading marksman for his home county.
Paul Coughlin will be key for Durham in 2021
What’s happened over the winter?
The rebuilding of Durham has continued apace, with Scott Borthwick the most high-profile returner yet from the post-relegation exodus – and the club’s new County Championship captain. He follows Paul Coughlin, who re-joined his home county in the winter of 2019.
The hope is that Borthwick, who left to further his England ambitions and scored more than 6,000 first-class runs in his first stint at Durham, can help to solidify a top order in need of consistency.
That prospect has been further aided by the news that Cameron Bancroft is coming back for a second term, with the second overseas slot being filled by South African batsman David Bedingham, who scored 253 runs in the Bob Willis Trophy and showed encouraging, early signs of his promise.
As a result, in Bancroft, Lees, Borthwick and Bedingham, the most formidable batting line-up since the days of Keaton Jennings and Mark Stoneman awaits bowling attacks at Emirates Riverside.
Off the field, an application has been submitted for the construction of an on-site Hilton hotel, with the support of the council. The hope is that approval comes back within the next few months. The venture is part of the club’s plan, under chief executive Tim Bostock and chairman Sir Ian Botham, to become more financially sustainable and less reliant on ECB funding.
“We’ve made some big inroads into the council debt and ECB debt, so we’ve managed to reduce our debt down quite significantly,” Bostock told The Cricketer. “Certainly by 2025 and 2026, we expect to be completely debt-free.”
Who’s arrived and who’s left?
While Borthwick and Bancroft have come through the door, several players have left the club: James Weighell, Ben Whitehead, Sol Bell, Josh Coughlin and Nathan Rimmington were all released at the end of the season.
Disappointingly, 21-year-old allrounder Scott Steel has also departed, choosing to reject a new contract in favour of joining Leicestershire. After a breakthrough T20 Blast campaign in 2019, he proved less successful last season, but nonetheless the news represented a blow.
He was joined in his decision to leave by batsman Gareth Harte, 27, who announced in February his intention to leave professional cricket for other opportunities back in South Africa, the country of his birth.
“I just want to say a massive thank you to all the players, staff and Durham members for their support since I joined the club,” he said.
“Durham gave me the chance to play professional cricket something I always wanted to do, and it has been a real honour to wear the Durham crest over the last few years.”
Harte averaged 41.66 in the Bob Willis Trophy, scoring 250 runs in five first-class matches last year.
Recent New Zealand debutant Will Young arrives as early-season overseas cover for Bancroft, while a dearth in the spin department will be temporarily filled by Warwickshire's Alex Thomson, who joins on a two-month loan.
Who will be the key men in 2020?
Scott Borthwick: The return of the prodigal son. “It’s always been on my radar that one day I would love to come back,” he told The Cricketer.
“Perhaps not as soon as it has come around, but this was a chance to come back home and represent Durham again. You’re not just playing for Durham; you’re playing for the northeast.” If he can replicate the form he showed in the final year of his first spell, when he averaged 40.76 and scored 1,060 runs, Durham will be well placed to profit.
Brydon Carse: The latest big hope at Chester-Le-Street, Carse was included in England’s 55-man back-to-training squad following last year’s national lockdown and then part of the 24-man group in preparation for the ODI series against Ireland.
He went no further on that occasion – and has still only played seven List A games in his career – but he is fancied for his physique and pace, not to mention his ability with the bat.
Chris Rushworth: 505 wickets and counting for Rushworth, whose annual stranglehold over batsmen has been a rare constant for Durham Cricket in recent years. If the batsmen can put runs on the board, then there will be few more potent seam attacks in the country than Durham’s, led by the 34-year-old, whose commitment to his home club has never wavered. You have to go back to 2011 for the last time he failed to take 30 first-class wickets in a full season.
One to watch?
Paul Coughlin: Hardly a youngster emerging onto the scene for the first time, Coughlin re-joined the club in the winter of 2019. After the frustrations of last year, therefore, this season represents the proper start of his rebirth as a Durham player.
When he left for Nottinghamshire at the end of 2017, he was an England Lions player and had captained Durham in the previous season’s T20 Blast. What followed was an extended period of misfortune: injury after injury restricted Coughlin to 10 appearances in two years across all formats.
And so, his return to Durham was a necessity for a player seeking a change in luck. Coming through 2020 unscathed, therefore, represented a success in itself. “I didn’t set the place on fire, but just knowing that I was turning up fit to get picked was quite a nice feeling,” he told The Cricketer.
What can we expect from this team this season?
With a strong top four and a terrific seam attack, the stars might just align for a successful red-ball campaign.
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