County Championship Essentials: Surrey v Leicestershire

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: Surrey v Leicestershire

Venue: The Kia Oval, Kennington

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?

Awkward. Both sides ended the first week as two of only three sides to lose. And that comes after they both ended the Bob Willis Trophy group stage with just one victory apiece. In short, neither are firing with the red-ball.

A Surrey side boasting Rory Burns, Hashim Amla, Ollie Pope, Ben Foakes and Reece Topley looked undercooked and were stunned by Gloucestershire at Bristol. Graeme van Buuren's second-innings century in the chase did the business.

Leicestershire were the first side defeated of the campaign as Hampshire rolled them over in an innings victory at Grace Road. A game overshadowed by the dismissal of Hassan Azad by Lewis McManus was done after 30 minutes of day four. From a Foxes point of view, Colin Ackermann's pre-match green jacket was the stand-out moment.

Who's in form?

Ben Foakes was probably Surrey's best performer of the opening round, scoring his 10th first-class century as the visitors attempted to set a formidable fourth innings target. A big red-ball season looms for the England man.

Having toiled with the ball, there was a crumb of comfort for Leicestershire to be found in their batting display. Harrys Dearden and Swindells, as well as Lewis Hill, all hit half-centuries to ensure they arrive in south London with something to build on.

Last five first-class matches (most recent first)

Surrey: LWLLL

Leicestershire: LLDDL

Head-to-head first-class record

Total matches: 162

Surrey wins: 75

Leicestershire wins: 19

Draws: 68

Abandoned: 3

What's the team news?

Surrey: Seamers Reece Topley and Gus Atkinson have been rested after last week's season opener against Gloucestershire, with West Indies seamer Kemar Roach and Liam Plunkett taking their places in Surrey's 14-man squad. Matthew Dunn, Daniel Moriarty, and Will Jacks will be hoping to make their first starts of the season.

Rikki Clarke, however, is still working his way back from injury and is currently representing the second XI against Leicestershire.

Surrey squad: Rory Burns (C), Hashim Amla, Jordan Clark, Matthew Dunn, Ben Foakes, Daniel Moriarty, Jamie Overton, Liam Plunkett, Ollie Pope, Kemar Roach, Jamie Smith, Mark Stoneman, Amar Virdi

Leicestershire: There are no changes to the 13-man squad who lost to Hampshire in round one, with Will Davis missing out once again through injury.

Leicestershire squad: Colin Ackermann (C), Callum Parkinson, Hassan Azad, Harry Dearden, Alex Evans, Sam Evans, Gavin Griffiths, Lewis Hill, Dieter Klein, Ben Mike, Rishi Patel, Harry Swindells, Chris Wright

Latest Surrey news: Click here

Latest Worcestershire news: Click here

Who's said what?

Coming soon.

What's the weather forecast?

Intermittent showers are possible from 3.00pm on Thursday but otherwise conditions are expected to be dry with sunny intervals. Temperatures will hover between seven and 14 degrees celcius.

Keep up to date with the MetOffice’s rolling forecast for The Kia Oval: Click here

How do I follow the match?

TV/stream: Surrey will offer live coverage of the match via the Match Centre on their website: Click here

The service is also available via Surrey'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. Surrey memberships are available here.

Travel: Not applicable owing to Covid-19 restrictions.

Prediction?

Surrey's all-star line-up has to come good at some stage and while Leicestershire are increasingly bullish about their Championship side, The Kia Oval isn't the ideal place to go needing a victory. Home win.

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