He has been a very fine bowler and of course he will considerably enhance the attack. Though I have to say when I saw the news of a new signing, my first hope was that we had picked up a handy bits and pieces player or a dasher at the top of the innings, our greater need, in my opinion. Where is Hayden Kerr when you need him?
Hopefully we are in contention if and when Amir makes an appearance. I will hold my breath on this one, because most of you will recall he was signing as an English national, which became overseas player for the first half of the season, which morphed into 'but limited to perhaps five first class games' and finally 'after the World Cup, maybe.'
If he arrives, if he plays, if there is a point at that stage, I will get excited.
Between times, Derbyshire need to win win a few matches. That the presence of a fully fit and firing Amir at the end of the group stage will help us is undeniable. But our problem so far is a batting lineup in which I don't have the greatest confidence.
We don't know yet if Nye Donald will be fit for the Nottinghamshire game. Concussion can be a challenge and the effects can last a while. Hopefully he is fit for Friday, but we need to wait on that. Certainly his free-scoring would be an asset in the first six overs.
Nor does it look good about Wayne Madsen. He had shoulder surgery in the winter and after landing on it in the field against Leicestershire, he couldn't raise his arm yesterday. There will doubtless be scans and x-rays today, but I would be very surprised if he was going to be available anytime soon.
So where does that leave our batting?
Somewhat ironically, the man who could perhaps have been an asset for us is commentating on local radio. Tom Wood was probably worth a T20 contract, because he either scored quickly or got out. It isn't an option now though, for me, because he's not playing in the Premier League with Ticknall and the leap is too great, even if his fitness was there.
Maybe the loan market? But realistically, how many clubs are so awash with talent that they can loan a gun 20-over bat to someone else? Mind you, Leicestershire picked up Lewis Gregory from Somerset and Ian Holland from Hampshire, so it can be done.
Another overseas? If two is company and three is a crowd, four is surely a waste? To my dying day, I will never be convinced in the merits of signing three bowlers, none of them with any major pretensions to batting. Nor is it easy for someone to fly in and hit the ground running. Remember Hilton Cartwright?
So we must make the best of what we have. I would go for the following side, if Donald and Madsen are unavailable for Friday:
Came
Guest
Lloyd
Patel
Lamb
Whiteley
Reece
Chappell
Wagstaff
Brown
Dupavillon
I have said before, Guest is technically the best bat in the club and can play any format. He is used to facing a new ball, good at rotating the strike and as fit as a flea.
Guest and Came would be quick between the wickets, Reece would be coming in, hopefully, against the seamers and old ball. Lamb is not very quick between the wickets, perhaps a legacy of last year's back injury, but we are not overly blessed with batters and he is a powerful bloke. Yet outside that eleven you have seamers Tickner, Conners, Potts, maybe Moore and Aitchison back soon...not to mention Dal. I always thought he might play a similar role for us as Dan Christian and Steven Mullaney did for Nottinghamshire, but he doesn't appear to be considered as a bowler in this format.
Interestingly, DD over his career goes for 7.7 an over in T20, while Tickner goes for just under nine. I thought he bowled really well yesterday, until he got his length wrong in his final over, so I would go for him in this game. If he can do what Nathan Rimmington did and castle Alex Hales in his first over it would do nicely!
Anyway, let's see what the next few days brings. The northern group is very open but I expect Birmingham and Lancashire to be two of the qualifiers.
The other two places are very much up for grabs.
It will be interesting to see the team(s) selected to play in the double header for the 2nds tomorrow v Notts.
ReplyDeleteCould be all over by the time Amir arrives, but like you say Steve if this was news of a big hitting batsman joining then it would be exciting news. But another seamer coming in regardless of his name just feels a bit meh. We're stacked with bowlers now, top heavy in that department, such poor planning by the management
ReplyDeleteAside from the missing players, the term I'use for Derbyshire cricket is we're constantly fire fighting both last season and this. If recruitment were better we wouldn't have as many fires and wouldn't be in permanent need of a fire engine. We always seem to be in need of a piece of the jigsaw, that extra player OK sometimes that may be injury or circumstances such as Amir. But nonetheless how many of our problems are self inflicted.? Excellent analogy even if I say so myself. The formulaic way we play the lack of dynamism it's all so predictable. Apart from the magnificent Hales at the top of order and a very good Joe Clark this is not by any means a great Notts team as in the title winning t20
ReplyDeleteteams They need to be dispatched on Friday. I don't on this occasion care by what brand of Cricket we simply just have to win Steve.
Steve jr.
Who is Tom Wood playing for?
ReplyDeleteTom is skipper of Ticknall, but they were relegated from the Premier League last year, when he was playing elsewhere. So the jump would be bigger still for him
DeleteWhen they are all fit we could just about field a full team of quicks with only Chappell able to hold a bat.What would we give for a Curran or a woakes or Willey right now! Topspinner
ReplyDeleteWe actually have a whole team of medium pacers and quicks can you believe!Here they are in batting order:°Reece,Whiteley,Dal,Chappell,Aitchison,Potts,Amir,Connors,Tickner,Brown,andDupavilon.They might not score many runs but plenty of bowling options!Grasscutter.
ReplyDeleteThe death over has been an issue, as has our batting power play. In-between, we are fairly good. The problem is, we have no stand in for Donald as an aggressive opener, or Amir as a death bowler. I would seriously consider sending Chappell in to open the batting against Notts, if Donald is out. Swing, or get out. Kris
ReplyDeleteHaving been away working abroad in Europe I have mostly lost touch this season and have been playing catch up and reading back pages of the blog. Has this season really been as bad as these pages suggest. ? Going to my first game this season on Friday was hoping for a win, not so sure now.
ReplyDeleteJoe.
Hi Joe, it has been disappointing. There was a sense of expectation before the season that hasn't yet come close to being met. Maybe it will, Tom, he's going to tell on that one...
Delete**time is going to tell...dunno where that came from
DeleteThe more I think about this season the more I have to say MA is under real pressure not to win anything because the rooster is clearly unbalanced and I feel its unrealistic now. But improved performances is attainable I feel the fans will acept this if a few wins are put on the board.
ReplyDeleteTim
Let's see how the seconds do tomorrow. You would expect it will be mainly first team players turning out. At the same time, I'm not sure how much you can read into seconds performances. Whiteley smashed 74 in no time at all in the last seconds T 20 game, but hasn't produced in the first XI, so far.
ReplyDeleteThe stats don't lie and if Madsen is out, we are struggling. He's one of the top 10 county bats in the country and we can't replace that. There is the hope that Donald is back and quickly plays one of his special innings, that win a game on it's own. I'm a big Donald fan, but he needs to be fit and out in the middle. I think the man has a lot of ability. Kris
ReplyDeleteAgreed a tremendous natural talent just doesn't show it anywhere enough. Given he's been on the scene for 10 years and still hasn't really established his career, this could be his last chance saloon. He may well find himself like the unfortunate Tom Wood and be marooned outside the first class game which would be extremely sad.But the pressure is now on he must take what might be his last chance of a first class career
DeleteSteve jr.
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DeleteTalking of having a team of bowlers, I propose we reverse the batting order no 11 opens and so on. I'm being half serious here because can we do any worse than collapse to 122 all out. ? It might utterly bamboozle Notts on Friday.
ReplyDeleteChesterfield Blue
Don't think so CB. We have lost 2 out 3 but there are 11 games to go. We need to probably win 7 from 11 and could do so by playing good cricket on Friday
DeleteI'm not too sure whether u would have allowed the latest post on the FF blog Steve but in spite if it's bluntness, I have to say I do understand where it is coming from. The whole show since the present Director of Cricket arrived has been a complete shambles in every aspect of cricket that u could name. The rationale for important decisions has been mindblowingly short-sighted and I believe this has frustrated and indeed surprised the majority of true Derbyshire supporters. It cant go on interminably ,of course and if the T20 peters out for the Club in a pathetic whimper, I would hope the correct course of action will ensue.
ReplyDeleteI don't read it, Sam. I know who you mean and I know what his manner is. I am a believer in posting only what you would say to someone's face and wouldn't allow anything that crossed that line.
DeleteNever heard of taeoundhe FF blog so took a punt and Googled it by just putting FF blog and up it came. Well I don't mind giving an honest inoffensive opinion. Well you have zero competition not that I'm saying that interests you because I suspect it doesn't Steve. The layout is poor the content is a miss mash. To much advertising through I understand why. Theirs something more relaxed about peak blog less corporate. While you have standards I feel the majority of people respect them Steve.How long as the FF blog been around.? It shows I'm not an Internet user really.
ReplyDeleteSteve jr.