Storm Kathleen has caused considerable damage across the whole of the UK, but especially in the Midlands and North. On top of what had already been a March and April of ridiculous volumes of water, it was very much the straw that broke the camel's back.
Derby has very good protection of the square, but the reality is that the outfield resembles a paddy field and it has not been of sufficient standard for first class cricket. You and I may have risked it for our weekend game, but we are not professional sports people, risking injury and potential loss of earnings and career.
Equally, it is not fair to point out that Nottinghamshire are playing, because the standards at the two grounds are considerably different. Trent Bridge is an international ground with commensurate levels of drainage and equipment, just as Derby is better than Chesterfield and so on.
Nor do I think it is fair to criticise updates or the 'lack of them' from the club. I had no expectation of any play yesterday and when I saw the forecast for last night I didn't even bother checking for any updates, because I knew there was no chance of play.
With the forecast for the next two days some way removed from good, I suspect that this is going to be a washout. Hardly the ideal start to the season, but such is life. Meanwhile, Glamorgan are racking up 620-3 at Lord's, on what appears to be an early season road.
I will be back soon, but I don't expect to be reporting on any play at that point.
I don't think it's unreasonable to expect some sort of communication from the club in order to let supporters know whether there is any prospect of play at all. A message on social media saying something like "The umpires have made several inspections today but in view of the very wet outfield their view is that any play today is unlikely." For supporters like me this sort of information would be invaluable as where I live is a 90 mile round trip to Derby.
ReplyDeleteIs Derby better than Chesterfield? We've had some heavy rain at Chesterfield in recent years and got games on. Not that it really matters... Kris
ReplyDeleteYeah but it isn't too many years since we had several days of glorious sunshine at Chesterfield but couldn't play at all, for previous rain. All grounds have a tolerance and Derby should be higher than Chesterfield because of the additional spend
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DeleteNot having the integrity of the club questioned. Out of order and deleted.
Delete100% right decision Steve.
ReplyDeleteAndy
As much there is frustration at lack of cricket the last thing we want in the opening game is to bring players out and one gets a serious Simon Jones type injury in the opening game. There has been no play at Durham and that is a test venue so it's just bad luck with the weather.
ReplyDeleteI guess the fact they said on Day 2 no play before lunch gave hope that there could be some play during the later part of the day.
The only thing the club could have maybe done more is to show the live stream so we could see how bad it was.
Looking out of the window at the moment, and at the present forecast for the next 2 weeks, I would say prospects of any play on the 19th April are looking slim...
ReplyDeleteNot really surprising when the ECB decide that it’s a good idea to start the season in the first week in April. Just another indication of their stance on the four day game. Even many local leagues don’t start for another fortnight.
ReplyDeleteNudger
Does anyone know when the last 4 day game at Derby was abandoned without a ball being bowled.We had the game at Chesterfield v Kent a few years ago abandoned without a ball being bowled.
DeleteIt was against Notts back in 1981 when a single ball wasn't bowled.
DeleteChesterfield has improved drainage since that washed out game a few years ago. I don't know if this is possible at Derby and if developments like the media centre have affected drainage/sunlight? It may just be the volume of rain....Kris
ReplyDeleteDavid Griffin put out a couple of short videos from the ground that showed exactly how wet the ground was and that chance of play was zero.
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