Derbyshire name a 14-man squad for the Specsavers County Championship match against Northamptonshire at Queen’s Park, Chesterfield, starting on Sunday 22 July.
Billy Godleman’s side return to red ball cricket to begin the Custom Solar Chesterfield Festival of Cricket, in association with Chesterfield Borough Council.
Overseas bowler Lockie Ferguson will miss the fixture at Queen’s Park as the Club manages his workload, at the request of New Zealand Cricket, with the Falcons set to compete in three Vitality Blast games in four days from Friday.
All-rounders Anuj Dal and Matt McKiernan have both been named in their first four-day squad after making their Club debuts in the Vitality Blast. Fast bowler Dan Wheeldon, who was part of the Debryshire squad during the Royal London One-Day Cup campaign, has also been named in the squad.
Chesterfield-born Ben Slater and 21-year-old Matt Critchley will be aiming to make an impression on the ground at which they play club cricket. The opener has five half-centuries in the Specsavers County Championship so far this summer, while the all-rounder has hit three of his own, with a top-score of 86.
Luis Reece, however, remains absent through injury after he suffered a broken metatarsal during the Royal London One-Day Cup match versus Yorkshire at the end of May.
26. Ben Slater
1. Billy Godleman
77. Wayne Madsen
18. Alex Hughes
14. Gary Wilson
20. Matt Critchley
16. Harvey Hosein
65. Anuj Dal
21. Matt McKiernan
28. Tony Palladino
7. Hardus Viljoen
75. Hamidullah Qadri
8. Dan Wheeldon
41. Ravi Rampaul
Northamptonshire sit eighth in Specsavers County Championship Division Two on 61 points, four points behind Derbyshire in sixth.
They have won two, lost four and had one match abandoned in a start to this season which has show glimmers of promise, particularly in the seam department.
Brett Hutton, in his first season with the Club since joining from Nottinghamshire, has claimed 22 wickets at an average of 22.50, while fellow paceman Ben Sanderson leads the wicket-taking tally with 23 at an average a shade over 18.
Seekkuge Prasanna claimed four wickets in his first four-day appearance of the summer in the victory over Glamorgan at the end of June, and the leg spinner is expected to feature again for Northamptonshire at Chesterfield.
Northamptonshire Squad: To be announced.
All-rounder Matt Critchley is looking forward to Derbyshire’s return to Queen’s Park, a ground he knows well and has fond memories of from last summer.
The all-rounder hit 102 versus Durham in Chesterfield last summer and is now aiming to turn good starts into a century on his club ground as Derbyshire switch back to red ball action.
He said: “It’s always a good occasion to go to Chesterfield. It’s a lovely ground with lovely people and it went pretty well last year, so a repeat this year would be nice.
“I’ve got a few starts this year and a few half-centuries, but it would be nice to kick on and get three figures back in the red ball format and turn an okay season into a good season.
“With a smaller ground it always feels like there is even more support, but when we get the crowd on our side it is a great feeling and when it is a close game it might help to pull you through.”
Custom Solar Chesterfield Festival of Cricket, in partnership with Chesterfield Borough Council. Buy your tickets in advance and save. Call 01332 388 101 or buy online.
