So my beloved Somerset started the year with such high hopes; talk of championship success for the first time. For those of us who follow Somerset, we knew from previous years that we were close to being a championship winning side. Trescothick leads the troops well, backed up by Hildreth. There are the young guns in Kieswetter and Buttler, but what else? This isn't a championship winning description.
Looking at today's XI against the Yorkies, I look at a side who will surely just be battling relgation: Trescothick, Suppiah, Gregory, Elgar, Hildreth, Barrow, Trego, Meschede, Dockerell, Kirby and Hussain.
20 wickets are required to win a championship match, looking at this side, I struggle to see where 20 will come from. Kirby is in the twilight of his career, Hussain hasn't played much 1st class cricket in the past year and has always been expensive since his move from Glos; Trego opens the bowling but is not an opening bowler. Dockerell will always bowl well but is still young and Meschede has only really shown in limited over cricket.
So what is the answer? It is easy to criticise, reading the above makes that clear, but how do Somerset improve? Why has the batting been so brittle? Where are our young bowlers? Too much T20 and 1-day focus for me is the problem; score quickly, inventive cricket shots, experiment with different bowling. What happened to batting for long periods of time, leaving the ball, boring oppositions out?
Let's see what happens in the next 3 days at Taunton, how will we bowl? Who will take wickets? Who will face 200 balls?
Looking at today's XI against the Yorkies, I look at a side who will surely just be battling relgation: Trescothick, Suppiah, Gregory, Elgar, Hildreth, Barrow, Trego, Meschede, Dockerell, Kirby and Hussain.
20 wickets are required to win a championship match, looking at this side, I struggle to see where 20 will come from. Kirby is in the twilight of his career, Hussain hasn't played much 1st class cricket in the past year and has always been expensive since his move from Glos; Trego opens the bowling but is not an opening bowler. Dockerell will always bowl well but is still young and Meschede has only really shown in limited over cricket.
So what is the answer? It is easy to criticise, reading the above makes that clear, but how do Somerset improve? Why has the batting been so brittle? Where are our young bowlers? Too much T20 and 1-day focus for me is the problem; score quickly, inventive cricket shots, experiment with different bowling. What happened to batting for long periods of time, leaving the ball, boring oppositions out?
Let's see what happens in the next 3 days at Taunton, how will we bowl? Who will take wickets? Who will face 200 balls?
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