Pre-Match Pack: Northamptonshire

Derbyshire have named a 13-man squad for tomorrow’s Royal London Cup fixture against Northamptonshire at The County Ground, Northampton (11am start).

Alex Hughes continues as captain in the absence of Billy Godleman, who will miss the remainder of the competition through a quad muscle injury. Hughes is currently in the side as a batsman, after returning from a side strain, but it’s hoped he will be able to bowl before the group stage ends.

Mitch Wagstaff could feature after signing a short-term deal, he was named in the XI for the abandoned game against Glamorgan on Friday. The youngster joins a youthful top-order containing Brooke Guest and Harry Came, while fellow Academy graduate Tom Wood completes the four.

George Scrimshaw misses the game through a foot injury, although he is edging closer to a return to action. He is part of a lengthy list of pace bowlers currently injured, with Sam Conners, Dustin Melton, Michael Cohen and Nick Potts also currently sidelined. Harvey Hosein also remains out through concussion and has been referred to a specialist.

Derbyshire Squad: 

22. Mitch Wagstaff
4. Harry Came
29. Brooke Guest
24. Tom Wood
65. Anuj Dal
33. Fynn Hudson-Prentice
18. Alex Hughes
15. Alex Thomson
5. Connor Marshall
53. Nils Priestley
21. Mattie McKiernan
14. Ravi Rampaul
11. Ben Aitchison

Bite-sized Stats

Derbyshire’s recent record against Northamptonshire is good, having lost just one List A game in the last decade, at Northampton in 2016.

There have been 61 scheduled fixtures between the two counties, with Derbyshire winning 30, and Northamptonshire 17; seven matches were abandoned without a ball bowled, six ended in No Result, with one match tied.

Current club captain, Billy Godleman is the only player to score two List A hundreds against Northamptonshire, 109 not out at Derby in 2015, and 125 not out at Northampton in 2018. He generally enjoys playing against Northamptonshire – in six List A innings against them he’s scored 476 runs averaging 119.

Click HERE to read the full stats preview.

Pre-Match Talk

Alex Hughes says he’s enjoying the chance to captain Derbyshire in the Royal London Cup, as he aims to help the young side compete and improve over the remaining four fixtures. 

The washout against Glamorgan earned Derbyshire a first List A point of the season, with the injury-hit squad enduring a tough time in the opening three games against Leicestershire, Somerset and Warwickshire.

With four games to go, chances of qualifying for the knockout stages look unlikely, while fresh additions to the injury list include captain Billy Godleman, fast bowler Michael Cohen and experienced wicketkeeper-batsman Harvey Hosein.

Godleman will miss the remainder of the tournament after suffering a quad injury, the second time he’s been sidelined this campaign after he missed red ball games against Nottinghamshire and Durham earlier in the year, while he also recently took a break from first team cricket after a difficult run of form in the Vitality Blast.

He returned to the side with a century in the Royal London Cup against Leicestershire, and played in the defeat to Somerset, but will now not be in action until the second phase of  the LV= County Championship. Hughes himself has only just come back from a side strain, which kept him out for two months.

The all-rounder admits he would rather have the club captain on the field, but is hoping to lead the side to some victories before the competition is over, as well as helping Derbyshire’s promising crop of young players to show the talent they possess.

“It’s in unfortunate circumstances because Billy has picked up another injury in a short space of time, which is frustrating for himself and us as a team,” Hughes told BBC Radio Derby.

“He’s a massive part of the team, but I do like having the chance to captain. It’s not something I aspire to do, but I don’t mind doing it, I like putting a stamp of my personality on the game and trying to win.

“I feel like I’m right back into the game, even though I’ve been out for a couple of months with injury, I feel like it’s been a pretty seamless transition back into playing.

“The group of lads is really good, we’ve got a lot of young lads, so it’s about gaining that experience and trying to become a better team and realise our potential. At times, we lack a bit of confidence about just how good we can be as players and I think what we’re trying to do now is push the ceiling a bit more.”

How to follow

Derbyshire’s Royal London Cup fixture against Northamptonshire will be Live Streamed, using the host venue’s feed, on the club website through our improved Match Centre, delivered in partnership with Purpose Media.

Match Centre also includes in-play scorecards, ball by ball commentary, clips and statistics, everything you need to stay up-to-date, no matter where you’re following from!

Clips and updates will also be provides via our social media channels, so make sure you’re following us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, so you never miss a moment of the action.