Bashir link surfaces

My post bag has been as sizeable as Santa's sack today, after a story appeared in The Daily Mail regarding Shoaib Bashir:

Daily Mail Sport can reveal off-spinner Bashir, whose snubbing for the first three Tests against Australia followed his release by Somerset. Unless there are any last-minute hitches, the 22-year-old will complete his switch to Derbyshire in the coming days.

Derbyshire believe there is potential for growth in Bashir as a bowler within their environment and equally that their squad will benefit from having someone with 68 Test wickets within it.

The only stumbling block has been some concern at board level about the six-figure salary such a player carries, and the prospect of it coming out of the 2027 budget should he lose his central contract next autumn.

Derbyshire’s outlay on him during the 2026 season will be limited to relocation expenses plus bonuses for team performance - whether he is selected by England or not.

Bashir’s 6ft 4in stature and high release point appear to be ideally suited to Derby, now one of the country’s bouncier venues for bowlers. But with competition from Jack Morley, the slow left-armer, highly rated by Arthur, he may have to bide his time to establish himself as the club’s No1 spinner.

My understanding is that things are not quite so clear cut and that this may be another of those stories emanating from the player's agent.

There is interest from Derbyshire and, as I wrote recently, I think he could follow in the footsteps of such luminaries as Tony Palladino, Mark Footitt, Martin Andersson, Luis Reece and Nye Donald in finding a successful home at the club. We have long been seen as welcoming, with the right atmosphere both inside and outside the dressing room. Some people need that, being valued and appreciated to produce their best.

Bashir can clearly play, but he needs the opportunity to rebuild his reputation in a positive environment, with the right coaching support. There also needs to be a touch of realism from the player/agent side, I suspect. Derbyshire has a finite budget and while the cost is minimal for this year under his central contract, they cannot and surely will not over commit for year two. 

By the same token, again as I wrote recently, we have only one recognised senior spinner on the staff. If we can afford to do so, how better to rectify that situation than with the man who has been seen as the best in the country until recently? How nice would it be to have the resources to challenge, regardless of the conditions? How good would it be to see 'Shoaib Bashir - Derbyshire' on an England team sheet? 

What the lad needs is a chance to bowl. Long spells, getting a rhythm, a preferred end and tiredness at the end of the day. Contrary to the current belief in the England set up, you don't get better at anything in life if you don't do a lot of it. Edwin Smith bowled hundreds of overs a summer for Derbyshire, which allowed him to take 1246 wickets. Some were in favourable conditions, but plenty of times he had to work hard for them.

The public perception of Derbyshire has changed. The club's foresight in appointing Mickey Arthur has been a factor, the presence of a world-renowned coach at the club has lifted our image beyond doubt.

There will be dissenters, of course and that's fine. And I must stress my understanding is that things are not yet at the stage expressed by the Daily Mail. Bashir may yet go down as an unfulfilled talent, but in my book if the chance to sign an international player presents itself, surely it is an opportunity to grasp, a risk to take? 

It is something to keep an eye on. I don't foresee a midnight dash to a service station on the M5 to get his signature, nor necessarily expect that it will end with a photo of him in Derbyshire kit.

But...it's intriguing isn't it? 

And if Bashir ended up signing, a few days after Mickey Arthur said that his team building for red ball was complete, he has thrown a curve ball worthy of Sir Brian of Clough...

With that, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and thank you for your input and support in 2025.

I will be back soon!

Weekend warmer

As we approach Christmas, Derbyshire supporters can allow ourselves a smile of satisfaction, because a lot of excellent work has been done since the end of the 2025 season. 

Better than England anyway. I have avoided commenting too much on the Ashes, partly because I have watched very little, partly because the incestuous nature of the national side holds no interest for me. 

The English side will return from Australia with exactly what they deserve. They failed to prepare, having paid lip service only to the format and got absolutely nothing in return. You cannot disrespect the game. It's all very well creating individual and collective reputations built on big scores on flat tracks against average bowlers. When you subsequently come up against the best, you will be found wanting. 

My county - OUR county - cannot be accused of that and I am hopeful that they will get the rewards that they deserve in 2026. A good squad has been assembled, now it is a case of getting them all to their physical and mental peak. 

With Mickey Arthur pretty much confirming that the red ball squad was complete, the only thing now would appear to be the third overseas player, a specialist for The Blast.

I followed an extraordinary game in The Big Bash yesterday, when the Perth Scorchers failed to defend 257-6 in their twenty overs. Brisbane Heat got the runs with a ball to spare, which was too much of a run-fest for me (I like a more even battle between bat and ball) but appealed to the crowd, who enjoyed 36 sixes. I don't think I saw that many in my first three summers as a Derbyshire fan...

I was a little baffled by the captaincy of Ashton Turner of The Scorchers, soon to become a Leicestershire player. When his bowlers  were going at 15-20 an over, he only gave Cooper Connolly two overs, in which he conceded only twelve runs. I mentioned Connolly a couple of winters ago as one to watch and he earlier made 77 from just 37 deliveries. With counties signing Aussies pretty much every day at present, I am surprised that no one has yet made a move for the 22-year-old. He hits a very long ball, bowls controlled left arm spin and is a fine fielder. He even attracted a 'Wow' from Mickey Arthur on X, which I won't read too much into. 

I suspect Mickey is hoping for a quality spinner who can perhaps hit down the order, but I would expect someone to move for a highly talented young man who has already made his national side. 

Speaking of Mickey, I was asked the other day if I thought he would stay beyond the coming season. My answer was 'yes'. I feel he has a genuine desire to win something at the club and the contracts this winter would not have been signed by players who were uncertain of the future. I very much doubt Mohammad Abbas would sign a two-year deal if he thought Mickey was not going to be there..

That's it for now. I will be back just before Christmas to wish you all the best, but between times enjoy your weekend and stay in one piece if you are finishing the Christmas shopping...

Tomorrow is the winter equinox. After that, the days grow gradually longer and before we know it, county cricket will be back.

With that lovely thought, I bid you adieu...

Chris Wright appointed the new bowling coach

I have no idea of his ability as a coach, but based on his extensive experience as a player, only recently retired, Chris Wright is an excellent choice as the new Derbyshire Men's Assistant Coach - Bowling Lead.

He only stopped playing at the end of last season, at the age of 40, having helped to steer Leicestershire to promotion as champions. In a career that started at Middlesex, then took him to Essex and Warwickshire beforehand, he took over 600 first- class wickets, adding another 200 in List A and T20 cricket.

It is a new voice in the ear of the Derbyshire bowlers, one that will be respected after a career in which he was always reliable, steady and dangerous. He was selected for England Lions and, like several members of the Derbyshire staff, had a stress fracture of his back, so he can relate to the challenges of their roles in the first-class game.

Head of Cricket, Mickey Arthur, said:

We had an unbelievable amount of talent apply for this role, but it was Chris’ energy, enthusiasm and his ideas for how he can drive our project forward which impressed me most.

He’s a very promising coach and, as someone who was playing the game at a high level as recently as last season, he will be able to form a great understanding with our squad and continue the development of our bowling attack.

Our pieces are coming together for nicely for the new season, our red ball squad has been finalised and now our coaching structure is ready to hit the ground running in the new year. I’m very excited for next season and I know our supporters share that optimism.

Wright added: 

I’m immensely excited to be joining Derbyshire. The squad is in a really strong place, and I’m

looking forward to working closely with our bowlers to help them continue developing their games.

I'm very familiar with the quality within this squad and well aware of the skills the players possess. Now it’s about refining our work through the winter and taking that next step towards promotion next season.

This is a fantastic opportunity for me and one I’m eager to embrace. Derbyshire is a club on the up, and the chance to work alongside a coach like Mickey Arthur is something any young coach would relish.

It will be interesting to see if he can get more from an attack that has undeniable talent but struggled at times over the past couple of seasons. The players will know what he can do and that he has been a respected operator in the county game for a long time.

Like all of you, I wish him well.

What a great end to 2025 we have had! 

Matt Stewart hat trick in Australia!

More good news for Derbyshire supporters! 

Matt Stewart is spending his winter playing for Glenelg Cricket Club in South Australia. Arriving in October, he took a lot of wickets in the second team and marked his debut in the first grade last weekend in Adelaide - when he was capped - with four wickets, including a hat trick!

Here is the footage of the talented young man taking his wickets. 

He has looked like one to watch since I first saw him and I am sure that he will continue to develop and hopefully become the next one off the supply line for the club.

Well done Matt! That's what I call making an impression...

Thoughts after the signing of Abbas

Serious question - has there been a more positive winter for Derbyshire supporters in recent, or even more distant memory?

The signings of Caleb Jewell, Mohammad Abbas, Matt Montgomery, Amrit Basra, Rory Haydon & Joe Hawkins, along with long term deals for Martin Andersson, Zak Chappell and Nye Donald will give the Derbyshire staff a leaner, meaner look for 2026 and beyond.

The red ball side, so much improved in 2025, should take on a different, better dimension next summer, with a proven new ball bowler leading the attack. Hopefully the arrival of a new bowling coach will help a few players find their best form and there will be strong competition for places when the action starts.

I suppose the only 'weakness' might be if Jack Morley sustained an injury. With Alex Thomson gone, we don't have another spinner of experience. It would be optimism beyond even my compass to expect Joe Hawkins to bowl teams out at his tender age, but surely the pitches at Derby will now offer additional help to seamers? 

Behind all the experience, the likes of Matt Stewart, Jake Green, Harry Moore, Rory Haydon & Nick Potts will be keen to draw on the expertise of Abbas (and the new bowling coach) to further their development. 

I would love to see the latter position filled by someone with a reputation to build and recent experience of the first-class game. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, keen to work hard with Mickey Arthur and Ben Smith as they aim to build on the summer just past.

After that it would just be the third overseas player, a specialist for the Blast. Surely a spinner, as the balance of the side dictates it? Most would favour a return for Mohammad Ghazanfar, but he will not lack suitors after his efforts last year and it would need another herculean effort to deliver that one.  But a T20 side that included a quality spinner alongside Matt Montgomery and three improved seamers would surely better last summer? 

Let us not forget that Harry Moore should return, his back hopefully strong and able to compete for a place across the formats. News of his immediate availability from April would indeed be the cherry on the icing of the Derbyshire cake...

Over the years I have written this blog, by this stage of the winter I could pretty much call a first choice Derbyshire side. 

I can't this year, so strong should be the competition for places. Especially in the seam department, where the options are many. I suspect that an opening attack of Luis Reece and Mohammad Abbas might cause sleepless nights among opposition batters, but who next? Aitchison? Chappell? Haydon? Moore? Brown, hopefully fit after struggling through last year?

It is pleasing to see so many positive comments on the signing of Abbas. I was surprised to see one referring to him as a 'has been', when his form for Nottinghamshire last summer and this winter in Pakistan suggests anything but. 

In seven matches for Lahore this winter he has 38 wickets at 15 runs each, following on from 32 wickets at 21 for Nottinghamshire last summer, including 3-33 and 3-18 in the final game against Warwickshire, when they clinched the title. 

Of course he could be injured, that can happen to anyone, but as a friend pointed out in a message to me, he has managed more cricket in recent summers than most of Derbyshire's existing attack. He knows what he can do and generally bowls within himself. Les Jackson was 37 when he took 143 wickets at 10.99 in 1958, and for a bowler of his style, 36 is not an issue. I could see him playing until he is 40, with little reduction in his effectiveness.

Nor do I see similarities with the signings of Suranga Lakmal and Mohammad Amir. I had concerns with the former at that time, because he had hardly played regular cricket in his career. He had never played in England and ended his career having played less than Abbas. As for Amir, he was poorly managed and advised, my enthusiasm at his 'signing' tempered by knowledge of circumstance. That isn't the case here. 

Genuinely, I cannot think of a better, more suitable player that we could REALISTICALLY have signed, who crucially wanted to commit to the next two summers in Derbyshire. 

These are exciting times and I can only applaud the club board for backing Mickey Arthur and giving him the resources to develop a keen squad.

It is over to him and his coaches now, to get them producing their best form across the summer and to get the best eleven onto the pitch at all times.

However it pans out, I reckon the slip cordon and Brooke Guest will be in for a busy summer!

Derbyshire sign Mohammad Abbas!

Wow. 

There are certain headlines that stick with you through your life. I clearly recall, as a youngster, reading the Derby Telegraph back page that said in big letters 'Rams Sign Dave Mackay'. Fast forward a few years, I remember the goosebumps when I was able to write on this blog  'Derbyshire sign Chanderpaul'. 

Today I can add to that, with the new headline. 

What a signing that is, what a statement of intent. What a fantastic piece of work by the Derbyshire off-field team, not just Mickey Arthur, but also Tom Poynton, the Non-Executive Director (Cricket) on the club board, Ryan Duckett, Dan Wheeldon and others. A signing of this magnitude happens infrequently, certainly in Derbyshire circles, definitely in this modern age when season-long availability is increasingly a challenge. This has taken weeks of work to bring to fulfilment and they deserve every credit.

It probably wouldn't have happened without Mickey Arthur, who gave the bowler his international debut when in charge of Pakistan and maintains a close relationship with the player. But this is a major coup for the county.

A high class international bowler with well over 800 first-class wickets at twenty apiece? For the next two red ball summers? That'll do nicely, thank you. Mohammad Abbas has taken wickets for fun throughout his county career, for Leicestershire, Hampshire and Nottinghamshire. He will keep taking them, because his style is eminently suited to English pitches. He isn't especially fast, but doesn't need to be. He nips it around at medium fast and is a handful for batters at any level. He hasn't played as much international cricket as he should have done, but has one hundred Test wickets at just 23 runs each. 

Derbyshire needed an attack leader for next year, the leader of the pack (vroom, vroom, for those of a certain age). With Abbas, they have it in spades. I would think the other seamers will be itching to play alongside him, work with him and learn from his skills. Other counties in division two will doubtless be sitting up at this news, because we have landed a genuine international star for the next two summers of red ball cricket. 

To quote the player: 

It’s exciting for me to join Derbyshire and work with Mickey Arthur again, he’s a fantastic coach and hearing his plans for Derbyshire, we share the same ambitions for the Club: to be in Division One. 

The team only just missed out on promotion in 2025, so I’m hoping I can come in and perform to win a few more games and give our supporters a trophy to celebrate.

Derbyshire did extraordinarily well to see off strong competition for the services of the player. Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire and Hampshire were all interested and the competing offers will have given Abbas and his agent some food for thought. I have no doubt there might have been more lucrative ones, given that those three counties play in division one and on Test grounds. 

Yet the bowler has chosen Derbyshire. He has a sports coaching business in the city and perhaps wants to lay down roots. I don't worry about the cost, because the club will be confident they can handle this, even at the level that was rumoured a few weeks back, figures of £110K plus £400 a wicket being mentioned. It may or may not be accurate, but even if it is, with inflation taken into account, those figures are similar to what was paid, back in the 1970s, to Eddie Barlow. 

Abbas has the potential to be an equal talisman. Not as a captain, certainly not as an all-rounder, but as that all-important man that they can throw the ball to if a wicket is needed, or the opposition are getting away. He will give confidence to everyone in the side. Such players always do. Risks will be taken at the other end, because he gives little away, so others will benefit.

Some might churlishly say he's too old. My reply would be simple. At 35, he has a good few years in him yet. Barlow was 35 when he came to the county, while Mitchell Starc has been bowling out England, at 36. Then there's Jimmy Anderson...

There is, I suppose, a chance he could miss some county cricket this summer, if selected for the Pakistan touring side on a 'horses for courses' basis. Yet he is likely to take more wickets in 2/3 of a season than many in the full season.

You have to be excited at this. You have to applaud the initiative, the dogged pursuit and the eventual capture of the man who could see Derbyshire go one better than they did this year, in red ball cricket.

I can't wait to see him in action. It is as if the winter has already shortened and Spring is already here.

Ashes to ashes

Dust to dust

If Abbas don't get ya

You'll be doing well...

Mohammad Abbas. Of Derbyshire. 

Merry Christmas, everyone! 

Postscript: there is a terrific recent article about our new man here

And you can watch him taking ten Australian wickets here

Weekend thoughts

Christmas is fast approaching and all Derbyshire supporters will doubtless be hoping for news of an overseas signing as an early festive gift. 

Will it happen? Who knows, but I hope so. There is a talented squad shaping up for next season and it only seems to require a talisman to lead on the pitch. 

It is evident, however, that the overseas market is a challenge. Quite simply, most of the big names simply don't need the graft of the county game, when they can make more money in less time with the many franchise opportunities around the globe. 

This week, Gloucestershire announced the signing of Australian all-rounder Liam Scott. He seems a decent player, but a batting average of 27 and bowling one of 30 is hardly spectacular. Meanwhile Hampshire picked up Jake Lehmann on a two-year deal as a 'local' player. Again a fair player, but in his early thirties he averages the same. I'm not sure what it says to the domestic players on their staff. Both signings could turn out to be brilliant, but on the face of it they are solid, rather than spectacular.

The ever more congested calendar makes overseas recruitment a real challenge. Derbyshire also need a third overseas player for the Blast and my guess is still a spinner, which seems our greatest need, especially with Alex Thomson and Samit Patel gone and Jack Morley not likely to play that format. 

Speaking of overseas players, Blair Tickner continue to take wickets for New Zealand, but picked up a nasty shoulder injury in their last game, which looks set to rule him out for some time. 

I wish him well, as I'm sure you all do.

Chris Rushworth, so often the bane of Derbyshire lives in his time leading the Durham attack, has announced his retirement from first class cricket. He has been an outstanding county bowler and I am sure will be equally effective as a coach at Warwickshire. 

Were I to select a team of players who would scare our side, Rushworth opening the bowling and Nick Browne, of Essex, the batting would be the first names on the team sheet!

Finally today, Lancashire announced this week that Sir Jimmy Anderson will be their red ball captain in 2026. Unless anyone can tell me different, I assume that is the first time a knight of the realm has been a standing county captain.

At 43 he will also be the oldest skipper in the current county game. Wayne Madsen, two years younger, will simply need to keep playing to catch up...

He has the Cricket World Cup to look forward to before the next county season.

We're all Italy, aren't we? 

See you soon! 

Book Review: Bedtime Tales For Cricket Tragics by Geoff Lemon and Adam Collins

This is an interesting little book, based on the popular The Final Word podcast.

It has a strong Australian bias, given both the authors are from that country, but there are some interesting tales within its 191 pages.

Some of them will be known to you, others less so. Bobby Peel allegedly urinating on the pitch is in here, so too the unrelated Charles Palmer taking advantage of a wet patch. The chapters are short and so it is a good book in which to dip when a few spare minutes become available. I enjoyed reading about the man who *could* have challenged Larwood, Laurie Nash, who sounds a character par excellence, as well as Jack Marsh, an indigenous player from the previous century.

There are tales from the UK, including Harold Heygate's one appearance for Sussex and Glamorgan's Frank Ryan, whose excesses with beer and women made Derbyshire's Bill Bestwick seem a paragon of virtue. He still managed over a thousand career wickets at 21. 

I especially enjoyed the chapter on 'Father' Marriott, whose eleven Test wickets cost only eight runs each and whose 711 first-class wickets exceeded his career runs by well over a hundred. A school teacher, he only played in the holidays, but after surviving both Ypres and the Somme, probably counted himself fortunate to play cricket at all. 

Stylistically, it is written as if listening to a podcast, but in this instance it perhaps adds to the charm. 

It is an entertaining and fairly inexpensive read. 

Bedtime Tales For Cricket Tragics is written by Geoff Lemon and Adam Collins and is published by Fairfield Books

Book Review: Lester And The Deckchair Revolution - The Life And Times Of Tony Pigott by Tony Pigott and Andrew Murtagh

Tony Pigott was a journeyman professional who was good enough (and crucially nearby) to help out England for his one Test match appearance, when he did better than most. He even postponed his wedding (sadly, later doomed to fail) in order to do so.

He gave excellent service to Sussex and latterly to Surrey on the field. The book contains some telling comments on his playing contemporaries and it is in its honesty where it scores over similar books that I have read over many years. 

Perhaps his greatest service to Sussex was when he attempted to get them back on an even keel and did so in a way that saw them become county champions, albeit after his somewhat acrimonious departure. 

His comments on the challenges faced as CEO of the club are refreshingly honest, including an 'inept' marketing officer and the groundsman's wife who ran and pilfered from the club shop.

His has been a far from easy life, with tales of divorce, custody battles for his son and battling through treatment for oesophogeal cancer. He tells of the challenges of injury throughout his cricket career and at times the book is far from an easy read.

Nor is it one of the longer books I have read, but much is packed into its 143 pages, including a useful statistical section. 

I have long held the view that many of the best cricket books are not necessarily about the biggest names.

This one, written with Andy Murtagh, reinforces that assertion and is well worth anyone's time.

Lester And The Deckchair Revolution: The Life And Times of Tony Pigott is written by Tony Pigott with Andrew Murtagh and published by Fairfield Books