That being the case, I am going to go with Tom Wood to replace him. Harry Came has signed a contract, but we have Wood on a one-year deal and this, with RLODC, would seem his strong game. It would, in my opinion, be crazy if we get to the end of the season without giving him an extended run to see what he can do. He fails, so be it, but without opportunity we will never know and he deserves a chance.
In Peakfan world I would pick them both, but Houghton and Cork won't omit the skipper, I am convinced of that. Nor do I think he will bat down the order, which he should. So we will see where that leaves us soon enough..
The only other change I could see might be Mattie McKiernan in for Mikey Cohen. Leicester is a huge ground and 'pace off' might be the way to go. They will almost certainly bowl Parkinson and Ackermann, so playing all three spinners might give us an edge. As I said the other night, McKiernan's ability to clear the boundaries also adds a dimension to the middle order.
My team:
Godleman, Reece, Wood, du Plooy, Critchley, Hughes, McKiernan, Hudson-Prentice, Guest, Thomson, Van Beek
Leicestershire visit Old Trafford tonight and we will have an idea of their side from that one. Australian wicket-keeper batsman Josh Inglis has a reputation to make here, as does Afghan medium fast bowler Naveen ul Haq. Inglis scores very quickly back home and it will be interesting to see how he adapts to English wickets.
Potential team: Welch, Lilley, Ackermann, Inglis, Derden, Swindells, Mike, Parkinson, Griffiths, Davis, Naveen Ul Haq.
From a Derbyshire perspective at least Mark Cosgrove, a perennial thorn in our sides, isn't there any more, but Ackermann is a dangerous customer and very underrated as a bowler.
That notwithstanding, I am hopeful that we get our Vitality Blast season off to winning ways, ahead of the game against Birmingham on Sunday afternoon.
As always, I appreciate your thoughts.
I'd expect Scott Steel to be in their top 4 Peakfan, perhaps opening with Welch moving to 5. If so then they've a seriously explosive top 5 who will be very dangerous. Stark contrast to ours outside of Reece.
ReplyDeleteThey also have Steele and Lilley as spin options in addition to Parkinson and Ackers.
I think we could struggle to be honest. They are coming off of two fine wins in the CC and have a side that looks tailor made for the short format which may have been what they'd prioritised.
Fingers crossed we see a galvanised side come out and see them off! Their batting is strong so a big score may be the key.
Being at the ground yesterday I’d be amazed if Madsen plays in the next couple of weeks. He really struggled to get off the ground with the help of the physio yesterday and looked in some pain
ReplyDeleteI know it was a used wicket but I expected more from Steel tonight. I hope I'm wrong but think they might have too much power for us
ReplyDeleteInglis and Patel looked very useful for them tonight. Inglis looks like their key man with the bat.
ReplyDeleteYeah I watched it. He did what you would have hoped McDermott may have done for us.
DeleteWe need an opening pair that works well in this competition. Reece and Wood might be it..
Wood - I agree PF. What is the point of the contract if he doesn't get an extended chance across all versions. I think Billy works if he can hold one end up and bat through at say a run a ball but that is only if there are batsmen who can score much quicker at the other end.
ReplyDeleteI watched the Glamorgan game last night; they didn't win but a wonderful innings from Labuschagne who apparently hasn't played much T20. No slogs, lots of excellent running and a strike rate of over 160.
I get the argument that Wood deserves a chance on the basis of his half-century at Leeds last year in his only opportunity but not that he deserves to play because we might not see what he's capable of before his contract ends, rather than that he strengthens the side and improves the chances of us winning. The same argument would suggest that Dal, McKiernan, Melton, Cohen, Priestley, Potts and Scrimshaw should all play as well.
ReplyDeleteAn opportunity will certainly come in the RLODC where both he and Came will almost inevitably have to play with the loss of 3 top 5 batsmen and the possibility that anyone who has an outstanding T20 might be picked up as a wildcard. Other than the innings at Leeds last year, I don't see much evidence in Wood's T20 record to suggest it's a format he does particularly well in. This year, he's averaged 21.6 with no half-centuries at a strike rate of 124, against Came's 72 with a century and half-century at 180, or McKiernan's 28 at 168. His record in 2019 was very similar, averaging 20 with no half-centuries at 124, inferior to Hosein's 35 with two half-centuries at 125. Of course, Derbyshire's coaches will have much more sophisticated metrics to judge on, and some of those advocating him may have a personal knowledge of him that convinces them that he's one of those characters who perform better on the bigger stage, but his record in T20 with just 2 half-centuries in 4 years of second XI T20 isn't shouting "pick me". Clearly, if we're effectively out of the competition by midway, or another batter falls by the wayside, then opportunity opens up, but Came, johnny-come-lately or not, is the form player.
I think most of those you mention have had opportunity and several years on the staff to use or waste it. Wood has this year, probably.
DeleteAt present, I would take him over the skipper in this format every time.
DeleteBilly will probably score 30 off 40 balls tonight and cement his place in the side for forthcoming games. Came and Wood should be given a run in the side now, they can't be any less ineffective than Billy, possibly Wayne as well even when fit
ReplyDelete