County Championship Essentials: Derbyshire v Worcestershire

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

Fixture: Derbyshire v Worcestershire 

Venue: Incora County Ground, Derby

Dates: Thursday, April 15, 2021-Sunday, April 18, 2021

Start time: 11am (session times have been altered during the first three days to cater for a pause between 2.50pm and 4.10pm on Saturday for the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral)

What's the lowdown?

Both Derbyshire and Worcestershire go into their second match of the County Championship season with a draw in their back pocket.

Derbyshire made the worst possible start at Warwickshire, finding themselves 0 for 2 within two overs of the new campaign getting under way, but recovered - with some help from the snow - to secure a share the points.

Worcestershire, meanwhile, staged a comeback of their own to grab an encouraging draw at champions Essex. After shipping 490 in the first innings, they were then 43 for 4 and 145 for 6 in response, before surging to 475 all out and ensuring the match would not swing against them.

Who's in form?

Legspinning allrounder Matt Critchley was in the runs and wickets in the draw against Warwickshire. Critchley made twin half-centuries and picked up two scalps. 

For Worcestershire, opening batsman Jake Libby impressed in the draw at Essex, carrying his bat for 180 and underpinning a major recovery effort which ensured the Pears could take a share of the spoils. There was a maiden century for allrounder Ed Barnard, too, who was also miserly with the ball in claiming three top-order Essex wickets.

Last five first-class matches (most recent first)

Derbyshire: DLDDW

Worcestershire: DLDWD

Head-to-head first-class record

Total matches: 145

Derbyshire wins: 48

Worcestershire wins: 44

Draws: 53

Abandoned: 4

What's the team news?

Derbyshire: Young seamer Nick Potts is included in Dave Houghton's 13-man squad along with Brooke Guest, the wicketkeeper-batsman signed from Lancashire last year.

Derbyshire squad: Billy Godleman, Luis Reece, Anuj Dal, Leus du Plooy, Wayne Madsen, Matt Critchley, Harvey Hosein, Brooke Guest, Fynn Hudson-Prentice, Michael Cohen, Ben Aitchison, Sam Conners, Nick Potts

Worcestershire: Overseas signing Alzarri Joseph joins the 12-man squad after missing the Essex clash due to quarantine protocols. Adam Finch, Jack Haynes, and Ed Barnard miss out.

Worcestershire squad: Daryl Mitchell, Jake Libby, Tom Fell, Gareth Roderick, Brett D'Oliveira, Riki Wessels, Ben Cox, Joe Leach, Dillon Pennington, Charlie Morris, Alzarri Joseph

Latest Derbyshire news: Click here

Latest Worcestershire news: Click here

Who's said what?

Derbyshire wicketkeeper Harvey Hosein is looking forward to returning to red-ball action at home for the first time in two seasons, with the Incora County Ground unavailable for use last year. Hosein featured in a friendly against Cardiff UCCE earlier this year and was full of praise for the surface on that occasion.

"Every wicket is unique," he said, "so we will take a look on Wednesday and Thursday morning, but the lesson that I took from the Cardiff innings was to remain disciplined, whether your batting or bowling, as long as you do that, you should get the results."

Worcestershire head coach, Alex Gidman, voiced his pride in his squad's performance against red-ball powerhouses Essex, stating: "I’m proud of the players and how they went about their business throughout the game in what was a brutal game of cricket against the best team in the country.

"They were outstanding and thoroughly deserved to come away with the points for a draw. The application and dedication to the task were second to none."

Commenting on new signing, Alzarri Joseph, he continued: "We’re excited that Alzarri has joined us. He is a very exciting young cricketer, and it’s great for us, our group and our supporters that he will be playing for us.

"I’m looking forward to having him as part of the set-up and the skill set that he brings. To have him for pretty much the start of the season and this chunk of cricket ahead is going to be brilliant."

What's the weather forecast?

Bright, clear and dry is the theme for the next four days in Derbyshire, with temperatures ranging from six to 13 degrees celcius. Overnight temperatures could fall as low as zero degrees celcius so frost is possible.

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

How do I follow the match?

TV/stream: Derbyshire offer a live stream facility via the Match Centre on their website: Click here

The service is also available via Derbyshire's YouTube channel: 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. Derbyshire memberships are available here.

Travel: Not applicable owing to Covid-19 restrictions.

Prediction?

Both sides will see this as a must-win as they look to secure a top-two finish and stay in the County Championship race. Whichever bowling attack enjoys the more fruitful first innings should secure success here. Away win.

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