Head of Cricket, Mickey Arthur, has confirmed that Billy Godleman will continue to captain the side in red ball cricket, as he looks ahead to Derbyshire’s pre-season fixtures.
Godleman, who has led the team on the field since 2016, has been chosen to continue in the role after impressing Arthur in the build-up to the 2022 season, in which he will captain the side in all LV= County Championship fixtures.
Ahead of the opening pre-season friendly against Lancashire, starting on Thursday (12pm), Arthur has praised Godleman for the leadership he’s displayed during their time working together so far.
“I’ve been impressed with Billy during my time here, he’s led well and he’s certainly got the backing from the dressing room,” said Arthur.
“Billy has an authority and an aura about him, so he will lead us in red ball cricket this year and I’m confident he will do it well. We’ve had a lot of shakeups around the Club, but it’s important that we have this one constant.
“We’ve spoken about how we want to be perceived and how we want to play our cricket, now we have the opportunity to embrace that and see where we can get to with it.”
Godleman, who has scored more than 6,000 first-class runs for Derbyshire, said that he was honoured to have been chosen to continue leading the Club into a new era, and that the squad are already seeing the benefits of working closely with Arthur.
“When Mickey told me that he wanted me to continue as red ball captain, I was thrilled and hugely excited to work closely with him,” said Godleman.
“We’ve struck up a good working relationship and I’m so excited to be on this new journey for the Club, under Mickey, he’s had an incredible impact on the development of individual players, and the group as a whole, already.
“Some of the ideas and experience that he’s sharing with us is really beneficial, you can see the positivity he’s brought to the whole Club, whether that’s players, staff or the Members that I’m close to.
“To be working so closely with Mickey and to have been chosen by him to lead our red ball cricket is something I’m honoured and thrilled about.”
Derbyshire return to match action at The Incora County Ground this week, with Division One side Lancashire traveling to Derby on Thursday for a two-day fixture. A similar game against Nottinghamshire will take place next week, before a the pre-season schedule rounds off with a three-day game against Oxford UCCE in early April.
Arthur says getting time in the middle is a the main focus for the squad, as they aim to build match sharpness ahead of their LV= County Championship opener against Middlesex at Lord’s, starting on Thursday 7 April.
“The guys are batting so well at the moment, I’m just looking forward to seeing them against other opposition,” he added.
“This game will be all about our players getting time in the middle and getting a bit of form. The key thing we’ve emphasised over the winter is getting in, focus on those first 20 balls to get your balance right, make good decisions and commit to their defence and attack.
“We’ve got a vey good pre-season period, there’s seven days of cricket between now and our first game of the season at Lord’s and players will get ample opportunities.
“Even though I got here late, this has been the longest build-up I’ve had in 12 years. Normally, I’ve had seven to ten days to get ready for an international series and then you’re underway. So it has allowed us time to do a lot of technical work and get the guys into the best possible shape for the start of the season.
“These pre-season games we play give the squad a big chance to put their hands up for selection. Any good high-performance squad works very well when people are pushing each other for places. We want that good competition because it creates good results.”
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