Counties announce pre-season friendlies

A host of two and three-day friendlies scheduled for March and April were announced on January 28

Preparations for the 2022 county season are beginning to take shape with numerous counties unveiling pre-season friendly fixtures.

Last week, on January 20, the ECB unveiled the fixtures for the 2022 season, with the first round of County Championship matches scheduled for April 7.

And a host of two and three-day friendlies, scheduled for March and the first week of April, have since been announced.

Somerset were among the clubs to reveal their pre-seasons schedule, with a two-day match against Glamorgan (March 21) and three-day matches against Gloucestershire (March 26) and defending champions Warwickshire (April 1) due to take place at Taunton.

Head coach, Jason Kerr, said: "We start the summer playing red-ball cricket, so it’s important that those skills are in the groove by then. It’s really important that we have strong competition. The three-day game against Warwickshire before we go to the Ageas will be key. We will look to pick 11 and play that game as we would do during the season.

^{Warwickshire have announced four pre-season friendlies [Harry Trump/Getty Images]}

"The other two games will give us the opportunity to get overs into people and time in the middle. It’s important that we are physically and mentally ready for the start of the season, and these games will certainly help with our preparations.

"The transition of skills from red-ball to white-ball is easier when your foundations are in place. It’s vital that the players are confident going into the season, and if they’re comfortable with their red-ball skills, then the white-ball skills will take care of themselves."

Gloucestershire have also unveiled a busy schedule, with matches against Hampshire (March 21-22) and Glamorgan (March 30-31) either side of their three-dayer against Somerset while Middlesex are set to host Kent (March 24-25), Surrey (March 28-29) and Essex (March 31-April 2) at Merchant Taylor’s.

Kent will face Warwickshire (March 21-22) and Lancashire (March 30-31) at Canterbury with Warwickshire going on to play Nottinghamshire (March 26-27), Worcestershire (March 28-30), and Somerset.

Durham, Northamptonshire, Leicestershire and Yorkshire are the only sides yet to reveal their pre-season plans.

Full pre-season schedules are listed on the county-by-county fixture pages.