Championship Essentials: Derbyshire v Nottinghamshire

Match times, streaming information, tickets and travel, team news, head-to-head record, weather forecast, prediction, and everything else you need to know ahead of the latest round of the County Championship...

Fixture: Derbyshire v Nottinghamshire

Venue: Incora County Ground, Derby

Dates: Thursday, April 29, 2021 - Sunday, May 2, 2021

Start time: 11am 

What's the lowdown?

Two sides looking to register their first win of the summer do battle at Derby. 

Nottinghamshire's draw at Worcester will be remembered for Haseeb Hameed's pair of popular centuries. The 24-year-old faced 635 balls in total in the match (a Championship record) on his way to 111 and an unbeaten 114.

Though it should not be forgotten that his side were in dire straits following on against a Pears side they would have fancied beating. 

Derbyshire have drawn all their matches but came close to snaffling a victory against Worcestershire in round two, having reduced them to 176 for 8 on the final day.

Serving notice of their qualities in the inaugural Bob Willis Trophy, this under-appreciated side continues to turn in impressive performances, batting out the final day to draw comfortably at Durham in the last round. 

Who's in form?

Matt Critchley is enjoying the purplest of patches. The allrounder has 449 runs at 74.83 at this stage, has hit a century and is yet to be dismissed for less than 40. Add in 13 wickets with his wrist-spin and the 24-year-old is arguably the Championship's leading player with three rounds done. Keeper Harvey Hosein is also in fine touch, has four 50s from six innings and has only been dismissed twice. 

For Nottinghamshire, Hameed and his opening partner Ben Slater's centuries against Worcestershire render them the form men in a misfiring batting line-up, though keeper Tom Moores has also impressed with an unbeaten 96 against Durham.

Last five first-class matches (most recent first)

Derbyshire: DDDLD

Nottinghamshire: DLDDD

Head-to-head first-class record

Total matches: 191

Derbyshire wins: 44

Nottinghamshire wins: 59

Draws: 88

Abandoned: 6

What's the team news?

Derbyshire: Dustin Melton misses out as he continues to recover from an adductor strain, while fellow overseas seamer Billy Stanlake has arrived in the UK but Covid-19 restrictions prevent him from making his County Championship debut.

Derbyshire squad: Billy Godleman (c), Luis Reece, Tom Wood, Leus du Plooy, Wayne Madsen, Matt Critchley, Harvey Hosein, Brooke Guest, Fynn Hudson-Prentice, Michael Cohen, Ben Aitchison, Sam Conners, George Scrimshaw

Nottinghamshire: Stuart Broad returns to the visitors' squad, having been rested for the draw against Worcestershire. Tom Barber and off-spinner Matt Carter both miss out.

Nottinghamshire squad: Steven Mullaney (c), Stuart Broad, Zak Chappell, Joe Clarke, Ben Duckett, Joey Evison, Luke Fletcher, Haseeb Hameed, Lyndon James, Tom Moores, Dane Paterson, Liam Patterson-White, Ben Slater

Latest Derbyshire news: Click here

Latest Nottinghamshire news: Click here

Who's said what?

Nottinghamshire's head of science and medicine, James Pipe, praised the fitness work of Haseeb Hameed and Ben Slater in preparing them for their match-saving vigils against Worcestershire, where the opening pair batted through the entirety of the final day to earn a draw at New Road.

“Hass and Slats have worked hard at their fitness and their physical preparation,” said Pipe. “They prepare to bat long periods of time by hitting thousands and thousands of balls in pre-season and it was great for them to do it out in the middle where it counts. 

“Credit it to them, they are good lads and they got what they richly deserved. They are good professionals.”

All kinds of records were broken in the process, with both men - Slater began his career at Derbyshire - now hoping to back up that form at the Incora County Ground.

What's the weather forecast?

With no rain scheduled to hit the banks of the Derwent, we should get a full four days of play at Derby's Incora County Ground. Temperatures won't venture much beyond the 10 degrees mark and there will be cloud cover throughout.

Keep up to date with the MetOffice’s rolling forecast for Derby: Click here

How do I follow the match?

TV/stream: Derbyshire will offer live coverage of the match via their website: Click here

All County Championship matches are also available via the ECB's central hub: Click here

The matches can also be viewed on mobile via the ECB app.

Radio: BBC Local Radio and the BBC Sport website will carry ball-by-ball radio commentary of the game. 

Digital: The Cricketer will carry live scorecards and daily updates from every County Championship match in 2021, as well as the latest breaking news from around the counties and exclusive features. Visit our County Hub for more. 

Going to the game?

Tickets: This match is to be played behind closed doors owing to Covid-19 restrictions. 

Travel: Not applicable owing to Covid-19 restrictions.

Prediction?

Derbyshire have made the most of the three extra points available for a draw this term and it would be no surprise to see these serial stalematers repeat the trick this round. Though there are signs that Nottinghamshire's batting unit is beginning to click into gear, their bowling attack is yet to take 20 wickets. A draw.

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