Derbyshire v Sussex day one

Derbyshire 189-8 (Reece 50, Donald 44)

v Sussex

Another home game, another largely disappointing performance by Derbyshire today. 

To be fair, the Sussex attack is a good one. England man Robinson, West Indian Seales, the excellent Danny Lamb (who I wish we had gone for) and Fynn Hudson-Prentice, who we know all about. One of the better attacks in the division, especially when they are all available. 

They bowled steadily today, but Derbyshire didn't bat very well. David Lloyd looked good but made an error of judgement and played no stroke. Brooke Guest got a good one, but Lamb and Dal did themselves no favours by playing across the line at the start of their innings. Lamb played three poor shots in four balls and looked out of nick, to be honest, while Dal is yet to find his 'engine room' mojo this year.

Madsen was caught down the legside and although Reece and Donald batted well,  Donald looking especially good, both fell without going on to an innings-changing score. Nice forties and fifties are fine and dandy in T20, but you won't win many four-day games if that is the best you can offer collectively.

Before bad light and rain took the players off, Tickner struck some lusty blows, but the innings so far looks woefully inadequate, the tail far too long. It wasn't helped by Chappell calling for a single that might have tested a pad-free Usain Bolt, the fielder running him out at the bowler's end when he could have had Tickner even more easily at the other.

Maybe Tickner and Dupavillon (spelt incorrectly on the club scorecard all day) will run through Sussex tomorrow. I really hope so. But I can't help but think that in going for two non-batting quicks as overseas picks we have heaped additional pressure on a batting line up that is far from reliable.

If you look back over county overseas players since the game opened up for them, I can't recall many times when a side went for two out and out bowlers, neither with no real pretensions to batting. There was Greenidge and Roberts, Procter and Zaheer, McEwan and Boyce, Turner and Holder, Mushtaq and Sarfraz. Sussex had two serious quicks in Imran and Le Roux, but Imran batted four and Le Roux was a pretty decent bat too!

Even this year, our opponents have Pujara and Seales, Gloucestershire have Bancroft and Zafar, Leicestershire have Harris and Handscomb but will also have Mulder shortly. OK, Hampshire have Abbott and Abbas, but they are proven performers over many seasons, while they have a pretty solid batting side too. Our two are relative unknowns, which can be an asset but can also be a challenge.

It means that those overseas picks have to take wickets as there's no back up plan. I remember when we had Venkat as our overseas, a lovely bowler who would have been devastating in a good batting side with runs to play with, but we were far from that and seldom gave him much to work with. 

In a side where the batting is erratic, only one bowler averages under 50 with the ball (and he isn't playing here) and we aren't catching very well, it is easy to see why we have struggled to fire this summer. It has to improve, no doubt about it.

Food for thought and just my opinion. But the one-day form has to be much better than this or September won't see an especially happy fan base.

For what it is worth I think it will be, but there are a lot of people need convincing right now.

Self included...