Essex v Hampshire
Rothesay County Championship
Ambassador Cruise Line Ground, Chelmsford
Sunday 22 – Wednesday 25 June | 11am start
After five weeks of Vitality Blast action, we now switch our attention from the shortest format to the longest, with the visit of Hampshire.
The Ambassador Cruise Line Ground will welcome the southern outfit to Chelmsford for round 8 of the Rothesay County Championship, in what promises to be a scorching few days of red-ball cricket.
With temperatures set to hover around thirty degrees in the coming week, the return to red-ball action is a welcome change as the Eagles look to climb the Division One table.
It’s been a quick turnaround in fixtures this week, with back-to-back T20 action at Lord’s on Thursday, followed by hosting the Kent Spitfires on Friday, and now heading straight into four-day cricket against Hampshire starting on Sunday.
Squad
Chris Silverwood has named a 13-player squad for the return of the Rothesay County Championship, which includes Sam Cook who has returned to the Club after being released by the England.
Jamie Porter is being rested as a precaution after sustaining a minor calf strain earlier this week.
The Opposition
Hampshire sit just one place above Essex in the Division One table, clear by just 7 points as both sides will want to shift away of the bottom two, Yorkshire and Worcestershire.
The side based in Southampton have won two games out of the first seven rounds, with wins coming against Warwickshire in round 6 at Edgbaston and Yorkshire at the Ageas Bowl in Round 1.
Hampshire squad: Ben Brown (c) (wk), Fletcha Middleton, Kyle Abbott, Felix Organ, Scott Currie, Ali Orr, Liam Dawson, Tom Prest, James Fuller, John Turner, Nick Gubbins, Tilak Varma, Eddie Jack.
Last Time We Met
August 2024 was the last time Essex faced Hampshire in the County Championship – in what was a high scoring draw where both sides only batted once.
Jordan Cox and Dean Elgar both scored centuries with 141 and 136 respectively and captain Tom Westley claimed a half-century with 64.
Toby Albert and Tom Prest’s centuries gave a glimpse of Hampshire’s batting future as their Vitality County Championship clash with Essex petered into a draw.
Both homegrown batters in their early 20s scored hundreds, with Albert playing in place of the injured Ali Orr, and Prest elevated up the order with James Vince unable to bat in his usual position.
The duo made sure Essex’s low chances of forcing 19 wickets, and a victory, became non-existent, with career-best scores of 124 and 156.
Matt Critchley claimed a late five for 96 as both teams took away 14 points – a haul that is unlikely to worry table-toppers Surrey in the fight for the title.
Division One Table
How To Watch
If you are unable to attend any of the match days, the game will be available to watch via the Essex Cricket Matchzone, through the YouTube livestream.
Daily highlights will be available after each day’s play via the Club website and social media. Live updates will also be provided through the Club’s various social platforms and channels.
Tickets
Members of both counties are free to sit in any available and vacant seat, though the Doug Insole Pavilion benches and blocks 1-14 and 27-31 are reserved specifically for member’s use only.
Should you want have access to Member’s areas during a matchday, we have the ‘Adult Member Area Upgrade’ available at an extra cost to general admission.
Meanwhile, advanced general admission tickets are priced at £16.00 for adults (£22.00 on the day), while young adults aged between 18 and 25 can purchase for £12.00 (£16.00 on the day) and under-18 tickets for £6.00.
Tickets can be purchased online here or by calling 01245 254010.
