Cast your vote for the DeVines Player of the Month for August. There are four contenders nominated for the award during a period that saw the team reach the Semi-Final stages of the Royal London Cup
Club Captain, Tom Westley had another strong month with the bat, making half-centuries against both Kent Spitfires and Gloucestershire in the 50-over competition. With several bowlers injured, the skipper also found himself doing a job with the ball, and he took 7 wickets in August, which included 3/33 against Yorkshire Vikings at Chelmsford.
Simon Harmer was in fine form again in August, going the whole month without going wicketless in a game. Overall, he took 11 wickets at 19.54. The all-rounder also scored some vital and memorable runs with the bat, included 20 from the final 4 balls in the last Royal London Cup group stage game against Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford which earned his side a point.
Feroze Khushi had a month to remember after getting his chance in the 50-over team and scoring his maiden century against Durham at Emirates Riverside. The 22-year-old impressed last year in the Bob Willis Trophy and again had Essex fans talking after following up his ton with 77 against Sussex Sharks at Chelmsford.
Like Khushi, Josh Rymell also scored his first century for the Club in August, after smashing his way to 121 in the Royal London Cup Quarter-Final against Yorkshire Vikings. The Academy graduate initially began the campaign batting a 6, but after a change in the order, he found himself opening with Alastair Cook and he took his chance with both hands. He averaged 55.16 in August and will be looking to end the season on a high, after making his first-class debut in the recent win over Glamorgan.
Vote now:
Aron Nijjar won the award in July for the second month in a row after an impressive end to the Royal London Cup campaign saw him claim 54% of the votes.
Second XI Championship: Kent v Essex Match Report
Kent 2nd XI v Essex 2nd XI
Second XI Championship, Monday 23 August
Polo Farm, Canterbury
Team News:
Essex 2nd XI: Christian Purchase, Robin Das, Feroze Khushi, Will Buttleman†, Nikhil Gorantla, Aron Nijjar, Aaron Beard*, Jamal Richards, Jack Plom, Ben Allison, Eshun Kalley, Naivedyam Dwivedi.
Kent 2nd XI: Marcus O’Riordan, Joe Gordon, Tawanda Muyeye, Daniel Bell-Drummond*, Harry Finch, Harry Podmore, Harry Turner, Ben Aldred†, Fred Klaassen, Jatinder Singh, Max Luckett, Joe McCaffrey.
Match Details:
Umpires: PJ Sparshott & RC Ellis
Toss: Kent 2nd XI won and elected to bowl first
Result: Essex 2nd XI won by 161 runs
Essex 2nd XI: 266 & 322
Kent 2nd XI: 321 & 106
Match Report
Essex’s second string recorded a comfortable victory over their strong Kent counterparts with Feroze Khushi playing a starring role after a notable batting performance.
Khushi hit 134 off 186 balls during a 243-minute second-innings knock, which was in stark contrast to his three-ball duck earlier in the contest.
Will Buttleman also looked in good nick, scoring 89 as Essex posted the first-innings tally of 266. Skipper, Aaron Beard hit 66 with Fred Klaassen (4/23) and Harry Podmore (3/37) the pick of the Kent bowlers.
Kent appeared to have taken the game by the scruff of its neck thanks to Daniel Bell-Drummond’s 110 and a contribution of 83 from Harry Finch, helping the home side to a sizable advantage – Naivedyam Dwivedi taking 4/73, while there were three wickets for Aron Nijjar.
Khushi’s heroics were backed up by 64 from Robin Das and Beard’s 40 as the game continued to seesaw. It was left to the Essex attack to finish the job. Nijjar took his match figures to 8/156 with five Kent wickets for 44. Jack Plom and Ben Allison chipped in with two apiece, helping the visitors to a comprehensive 161-run success.
Report courtesy of Brian Jeeves
Match Report: Essex v Gloucestershire
Essex v Gloucestershire
LV= Insurance County Championship
The Cloudfm County Ground, Chelmsford, Sunday 05 September – Wednesday 08 September
Team News:
Essex: Nick Browne, Alastair Cook, Tom Westley (c), Michael Pepper, Paul Walter, Josh Rymell, Adam Wheater (wk), Simon Harmer, Shane Snater, Sam Cook, Jamie Porter.
Gloucestershire: Ben Charlesworth, Miles Hammond, James Bracey (wk), Chris Dent (c), Tom Lace, Graeme van Buuren, Ryan Higgins, Ollie Price, Zafar Gohar, Tom Price, David Payne.
Match Details:
Umpires: Neil Bainton & Tom Lungley
Toss: Essex, who elected to field
Result:
Scorecard: View Here
Day Three Highlights:
Day Three Reaction: Anthony McGrath
Day Three Match Report:
Simon Harmer took his LV= Insurance County Championship wicket tally for the season to 49 as Essex maintained their top spot in Division Two with an innings and three-run victory over Gloucestershire.
Off-spinner Harmer returned four for 78 as Essex claimed the five wickets needed on day four before lunch – with Gloucestershire bowled out for 197.
Essex have won both their Divisional stage matches by an innings, having previously thrashed Glamorgan.
Essex’s initial pursuit of the final five wickets didn’t take long as three wickets fell for no runs.
Sam Cook dragged Tom Lace outside off stump and caught an edge to bucket hands Simon Harmer at second slip with the 11th ball of the morning.
Ten balls later and Cook struck again with a fullish delivery to strike Graeme van Buuren on the pads.
In the following over, Chris Dent bravely attempted to leave Harmer – who had been getting significant turn and bounce – only for that delivery to cannon into middle and off.
Ryan Higgins and Zafar Khan wobbled Gloucestershire off 134 – with the former finding fluency with four fours and a six.
Pakistani overseas Zafar also found the boundary four times on his way to 24 during a 78-minute partnership with Higgins, worth 54.
But Harmer eventually ended the stand when he snared an outside edge to Alastair Cook at first slip.
And the victory was wrapped up at 12:18pm when Higgins was run out attempting a second run by Shane Snater at square leg.
Day Two Highlights:
Day Two Reaction: Paul Walter
Day Two Match Report:
Essex found themselves on the brink of victory in the Division Two clash with Gloucestershire at The Cloudfm County Ground after a superb innings by Paul Walter, who was dismissed four runs short of a his maiden Essex century.
That outstanding and responsible performance underpinned an Essex first innings advantage of 200 runs and the value of this innings became more apparent as the visitors were reduced to 132 for 5 by the close; still requiring a further 68 runs to avoid an innings defeat.
Only Ben Charlesworth and James Bracey put up any real resistance. The pair resisted for 27 overs while adding 58 after opener Miles Hammond was trapped lbw by Shane Snater for 17 with the total on 35.
Charlesworth made 49 from 124 deliveries of which he steered six off them to the boundary before becoming another lbw victim, this time to the irrepressible Simon Harmer. Bracey went on to complete a battling half-century from 118 balls that included seven fours but was then dismissed when he flashed at a delivery from Sam Cook and was caught by Harmer in the slips.
Once Charlesworth and Bracey had been separated, the innings went into rapid decline with three wickets falling for 9 runs in 21 deliveries late in the day.
Bracey’s dismissal on 123 was followed by that of Tom Price one run later as the batsman steered a Harmer ball into the hands of Nick Browne at backward short leg and then brother Ollie Price, sent in as nightwatchman, was run out without score by an outstanding direct throw from Josh Rymell at deep square leg.
Essex had begun the day on 150 for 5 but only added another 4 runs before Adam Wheater was dismissed.
He had scored 34 in a partnership of 79 with Paul Walter before Tom Price had him caught by his brother Ollie at second slip.
Walter and Harmer however scored freely as they carried the total beyond 200, during a stand worth 71, to earn the county their first batting point.
Harmer adopted an aggressive approach with a series of fine strokes as he collected seven boundaries while making 45 from 69 deliveries.
He lost his wicket when Tom Lace held a sharp catch low down at third slip off the bowling of Ryan Higgins soon after Walter attempt to record his maiden Championship century fell agonisingly short.
The tall left-hander, who has now posted four half-centuries in the Championship this summer, was also caught by Lace who juggled with the ball at third slip before completing the catch to give paceman David Payne a success.
It left the batsman who showed a range of strokes without risk arriving at his 50 from 117 balls before advancing towards his hundred only to fall for 96 that spanned 241 deliveries and contained 15 fours.
Shane Snater was removed by spinner Zafar for 10 but an entertaining last wicket partnership of 32 between Sam Cook – who contributed an unbeaten 22 – and Jamie Porter took Essex to a total of 276 and a first innings lead of exactly 200.
That landmark was reached with an onside 6 by Porter against Zafar before the batsman fell in the same over for 17 and his highest score for three seasons.
Day One Highlights:
Day One Reaction: Sam Cook
Day One Match Report:
On a day when 15 wickets fell at The Cloudfm County Ground on the first day of the LV= Insurance County Championship match, Paul Walter provided the standout innings as Essex reached the close on 150-5 having bowled Gloucestershire out for just 76 in the morning session.
Jamie Porter took 4/32 whilst Sam Cook and Simon Harmer shared six wickets as the visitor’s innings was demolished in 28 overs but the home side also lost wickets cheaply slumping to 32-4 in reply until Walter orchestrated a recovery.
Understandably, he batted cagily initially eschewing possible demise with a disciplined and controlled technique. He was content to pick off the loose delivery and arrived at his 4th red-ball half-century of the summer with his 8th boundary having faced 118 balls.
By the close, his unbeaten 71 had proved the bedrock of a valuable lead of 74 runs.
He found valuable support from Josh Rymell and Adam Wheater. He and 20-year-old Rymell more than doubled the score with a partnership worth 43 before the patient Rymell was caught at first slip for 14 when facing Pakistan orthodox left-arm spinner Zafar Gohar.
Then Wheater joined Walter for an unbroken stand worth 75, with Wheater contributing 30 as the pair successfully foiled the threat of spinner Zafar as they batted through 31 overs to the close.
Porter and Cook had wreaked havoc to the visitors batting who, having been put onto bat, immediately experienced problems to find themselves 32-6 before 10 overs had been completed.
Porter, playing the 100th first-class match of his career, soon celebrated the milestone with the dismissal of both openers, Miles Hammond in his second over of the morning before claiming Ben Charlesworth 8 balls later – both batsmen falling to leg before shouts.
The removal of Charlesworth, who was the only batsman in the top six to reach double figures (12) started a spectacular collapse with five wickets toppling in 20 balls for 12 runs to leave the West Country side in disarray as the innings declined to 32-6 with Cook banking three wickets. He found the edge to have James Bracey caught behind then Tom Lace had his off-stump knocked back when failing to play a shot.
With their tails up, the Essex new ball duo continued to run amok. Porter had Chris Dent caught by Simon Harmer at second slip and then Graeme van Buuren shouldered arms when facing a Cook delivery and was bowled as four wickets went down in 14 balls.
Ryan Higgins played with good sense to provide the major contribution of 25 as a series of unwise strokes proved the undoing of a number of his colleagues.
Oliver Price picked out Nick Browne in the gully to give Porter a fourth wicket and leave the visitors 47-7. Higgins was then joined by Zafar and the pair had colluded for a stand worth 26 when Harmer joined the attack for the first time.
In three overs, he wrapped up the innings. With his third delivery, he had Zafar caught at square leg for 12 – the joint second-highest score of the innings – and four balls later, he induced a fatal edge from Higgins as Michael Pepper took the catch at short-leg.
Five balls later, Harmer bagged his 45th Championship wicket of the campaign when breaching the defences of last man David Payne as Gloucestershire were bowled out in 28 overs.
Cook took his tally for the season to 43 in the Championship with figures of 3/27 whilst Harmer was 3/2 runs in 3 overs taking his tally to 45 in the competition.
The home side also experienced problems early on losing Browne, Tom Westley and Pepper for single figures scores whilst Alastair Cook made 15 before he was trapped in front of his stumps by Higgins.
However, Walter stepped forward to address the problems and leave Essex in the driving seat.
Match Preview: Essex v Gloucestershire
Essex v Gloucestershire
LV= Insurance County Championship
The Cloudfm County Ground, Chelmsford
Sunday 05 – Wednesday 08 September
10:30am start
The top two teams in Division Two meet at The Cloudfm County Ground on Sunday when Essex entertain Gloucestershire in the LV= Insurance County Championship.
Essex made a superb start to their round of four matches in Division Two when they beat Glamorgan by the comprehensive margin of an innings and 74 runs earlier this week.
Nick Browne scored 102, his first century of the summer, Michael Pepper posted 63 whilst Simon Harmer claimed 3/46 in the Welsh County’s first innings and Sam Cook 5/37 in their second innings.
But Shane Snater was the standout player for Essex, having wrecked the home side’s first innings with 6/39 before following up with 48 as his side took a firm grip on proceedings.
Then for good measure, the 25-year-old Dutch international removed Steve Reingold shortly after Glamorgan began their second innings when his direct throw from cover left the batsman stranded yards out of his ground.
Essex head Division Two with 41 points, 10 more than Gloucestershire who arrive at Chelmsford having completed victory over Northamptonshire by 6 wickets.
The West Country side were outplayed over the first two days of the match at Bristol and trailed on first innings by 136 runs before staging an impressive fight back.
They were eventually left requiring 266 to win and thanks to 94 by Miles Hammond, an unbeaten 67 by Tom Lace and 53 not out from Graeme van Buuren, victory was achieved to complete a remarkable turnaround.
Squad:
>Hear from Snater:
Having been sidelined since 8th August with injury, Shane Snater turned in a fine all-round performance for Essex in the win at Cardiff and admitted he was delighted to be back.
He said: “It’s nice to be playing again and getting a few wickets and runs and to be able to contribute to the team.”
The 25-year-old was playing only his 10th first-class match but has now taken a total of 52 wickets and 22 of those have been in his six matches for Essex.
“It’s really clicked for me this year in red-ball cricket which is nice although I’ve been around the white ball stuff in the past.
“As I say, things have really moved on for me this season and it’s nice to be part of the team in the longer format.
“At 25, people might say I’m a bit of a late entry into the side but it’s hard to get into this Essex team because they have so many fine bowlers.
“I believe that I’ve matured as a player this year and that comes as you play more matches. I’m reasonably happy with what I’ve achieved so far this season as a player and where I am at the moment, but I want to go on improving.
“We still have three games left and I want to continue taking wickets and scoring runs and obviously to contribute to the team’s performances. It’s probably not been the best of seasons for Essex in terms of results and where we are, but we know we can improve and crack on next year and make our mark again.”
Injury/Absentees News:
Dan Lawrence misses out due to his involvement with the England squad in the fourth Test against India.
Opposition:
Although Gloucestershire won five of their opening 10 Group 2 matches in this year’s conference system, they failed to qualify for Division One status and the chance to challenge for the County Championship title by 14 points.
Gloucestershire finished in third place but three defeats and two draws from their final five matches proved costly as both Somerset and Hampshire clinched the Division One places by virtue of more draws and bonus points.
One to Watch:
Ryan Higgins moved to Gloucestershire from Middlesex at the end of the 2017 season and soon settled into his new surroundings becoming an outstanding all-rounder in the County Championship for the Bristol-based Club.
His nagging medium pace and quick runs from the lower-middle order helped them earn promotion from Division Two in 2019 when he took 50 wickets and scored 958 runs to spearhead the promotion charge.
He has continued to impress in all formats of the game and has become a stalwart of the Gloucestershire side.
Head-to-Head:
The teams last met at Chelmsford in the County Championship back in 2016 when Essex recorded a facile 10-wicket victory.
The visitors were dismissed in their first innings for 262 after Jamie Porter returned 4/59 before Essex replied with 385 thanks to 105 by Alastair Cook and 121 from Tom Westley, with the duo adding 222 for the second wicket.
Graham Napier, Ravi Bopara and Porter each took three wickets when Gloucestershire were bowled out for 215. Needing 92 to complete the win, Nick Browne (55) and Cook (35) eased Essex to success with an unbeaten 94 run partnership.
Potential Milestones:
Adam Wheater requires 2 more victims to reach 150 first-class dismissals for Essex. He currently has 136 catches and 12 stumpings.
Ryan ten Doeschate requires a further 159 runs to reach 10,000 first-class career runs for Essex.
How To Watch:
Our Live Stream service will be available across all four days of this game from 10:30am, which also includes player stats, scorecards and clips throughout the day.
Access via the Essex Cricket Matchzone is available here.
LV= Insurance County Championship: Spectator Information
The LV= Insurance County Championship returns to Chelmsford this weekend for the visit of Gloucestershire to The Cloudfm County Ground.
After a comprehensive win over Glamorgan, Tom Westley’s men will be looking to make it two wins in two games and continue a positive start to the next stage of the competition in Division Two.
The ground will be operating a fully seated capacity for the match with a split of Unallocated Members and Public seating.
Members are welcome to use Doug Insole Pavilion with a section of the benches also available.
The LV= Insurance County Championship is part of the 2021 Membership and the capacity for Members’ entry into the ground will remain unrestricted for these fixtures.
Members are not required to purchase a ticket in advance and can enter the ground using their 2021 Membership card.
General Public tickets are on sale now and must be purchased in advance. Please note that tickets for all remaining games will not be available to purchase on the gates.
Scheduled Hours of Play:
• Timings:
Game Begins: 10:30am Morning Session: 10:30am-12:30pm Afternoon Session: 1:15pm-3:15pm Evening Session: 3:30pm-5:30pm
Ahead of your visit:
We want to make sure supporters are all set ahead of visiting the ground. We continue to work closely with the Chelmsford City Council Safety Advisory Group, Chelmsford Trading Standards, and the ECB to ensure that games can operate safely whilst continuing to mitigate against the risk of COVID-19 within the new guidelines.
We must stress that COVID-19 is still prevalent. Spectators are not required to present an NHS COVID-19 pass or negative lateral flow test but please do not travel to the ground if have tested positive or have any symptoms and follow the Government guidelines.
In the event of adverse weather conditions on the day of the match, please keep up to date with the prospects of play via the Club’s Twitter and Facebook channels or from our automated phone line on 01245 254049.
The Cloudfm County Ground is now a cashless ground for 2021, so please make sure you bring a suitable method of payment for your visit. Find out more – here
Parking:
• Spectators travelling by car will need to locate a public car park in the proximity of the ground as there is no parking available on-site at The Cloudfm County Ground.
• The High Chelmer multi-storey will be open across all four days and closes at 6pm on Sunday and 10pm during the week.
• Meteor Way will be open for Members and open three hours before the start of play and on a first-come, first-served basis.
Ground Entry:
Spectators are able to enter the ground via the Main Gate located on New Writtle Street or through the Tees River Gate.
• Members: The Doug Insole Pavilion is open for Members upon the presentation of a valid Membership card and accessible by entering the ground through the Main Gate.
• Members are not required to pre-book a match ticket and can enter by scanning their Membership card on the gate. If you require a replacement card, please get in contact with the Membership & Ticketing Office before the fixture to arrange a replacement or this may cause delays on entry for you and other spectators.
• Entry to this fixture are included in 2021 Membership and encourage Members to arrive in plenty of time to secure your seat. All seating for these games is Unallocated and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Renewing Members from the 2020 season are entitled to bring one complimentary guest for this match. This will simply require a ‘double tap’ of the Membership card and a ticket does not need to be purchased in advance.
• The Members’ seated areas are located in the Doug Insole Pavilion Benches, Tom Pearce Stand, and Areas 11-14 in the River End of the ground. Members are also welcome to sit in the Aon Stand which is accessible via the Hayes Close Gate.
• In the event of rain forecast on the day of the match, spectators can bring a small umbrella into the ground but metal spiked umbrellas are not permitted.
• General Public Seating:
• Supporters who have purchased tickets can enter the ground by scanning the QR on your tickets that has been sent to you via email following your purchase. If you choose to print out your ticket, please ensure that the match details (including name and seat details) are included as per the image below. Make sure you have your match ticket available on your phone or printed out so it is easily accessible for ticket scanning on arrival. Please do not take a ‘screen grab’ of your QR code as that will not be read by the scanners.
• Ticket holders for this game are welcome to sit in the Unallocated Areas numbered 15-26, which includes covered seating in Areas 22-24.
• Wheelchair-accessible seating is located in Areas 1 and 30 and can be allocated by contacting the Membership and Ticketing Office in advance (01245 254010).
Moving Around the Ground:
• We kindly request that masks continue to be worn when moving around The Cloudfm County Ground. You will not be required to wear a mask when seated.
• We also ask that spectators try and keep to social distancing where possible although The Club recognise that this is not always practical nor possible.
• Additional hand sanitisation stations and toilet facilities will continue to be in place for the remainder of the season.
• Whilst restrictions continue to be lifted, the threat of COVID-19 has not yet disappeared. We ask all spectators to take a common-sense approach when moving around The Cloudfm County Ground.
• Spectators are permitted to move behind the Doug Insole Pavilion but please respect the players’ area and walkway. We also ask that spectators do not request autographs or photos with players who are required to remain socially distant.
• Toilets are located across The Cloudfm County Ground with wheelchair accessible by the main scoreboard, River End and rear of the Doug Insole Pavilion.
• The Club Store and Membership & Ticketing Office will be open for spectators for the duration of your visit.
If you experience any anti-social or discriminatory behaviour during your visit to The Cloudfm County Ground then, please contact your nearest steward. Alternatively, you can text ‘CROWD’ including your stand and issue to 60070.
Food & Drink:
• The Doug Insole Pavilion will be welcoming Members back through its doors and there will be a wide range of hot and cold drinks available from the bar. A choice of snacks will also be on sale.
*The Members’ Restaurant will not be available for the 2021 season
• Anne’s Pantry returns for this fixture and the Royal London Cup campaign offering a choice of home-cooked meals, cakes/snacks, and drinks from their refreshment kiosks located in the Hayes Close End and River End.
Anne Pantry Menu:
Bacon Rolls, Gourmet Burgers (vegan burger option available), Bratwurst (Veganwurst option available), Chips, Pies, Chinese Chicken Curry, Chicken & Chorizo Paella (Vegan Paella option available), Crisps, Cake. We welcome supporters with varied diets and can offer gluten-free & dairy-free options.
• Other refreshment kiosks include bars area located at either end of the ground in County Corner and Spinner’s Bar.
• Spectators can bring food and drink into the ground for this fixture. A limit of four cans of beer/lager or one bottle of wine per person but there’s strictly no glass or sharp objects permitted into the ground.
• Please note that The Cloudfm County Ground is now a cashless ground for 2021, so please make sure you bring a suitable method of payment for your visit.
Leaving the Ground:
At the conclusion of the day’s play, we ask spectators leave the ground in a safe and patient manner. Stewards will be on hand to help direct you safely out of the ground.
We hope you have an enjoyable visit to The Cloudfm County Ground and further information regarding the match, including squad announcements and a full match preview will be available on essexcricket.org.uk ahead of the match.
Get in touch with us by email if you have any further questions at [email protected] or via the Club’s official Twitter and Facebook channels.
Who’s Involved?
The Essex Cricket Business Club is a great opportunity to expand your businesses network. We understand the importance of hosting representatives from a wide variety of industries and therefore we carefully select the businesses we partner with. Take a look below to see who is involved so far, to make it easier we have listed the businesses by their industry.
Westley & Harmer Nominated for PCA Player of the Month
Tom Westley and Simon Harmer have been two of the top performers in domestic cricket during August and are up for the latest PCA Player of the Month awards.
The pair have been nominated as part of four nominees for the men’s awards and identified by the PCA Most Valuable Player Rankings, a bespoke algorithm, which was designed by the PCA, the players and CricViz to give the most accurate representation of the best players in the game.
Simon Harmer, Liam Livingstone, Tom Westley and Tim David are nominated for the penultimate men’s award of the 2021 season, whilst Eve Jones, Alice Capsey, Linsey Smith and Erin Burns are up for the equivalent women’s award.
The winners will be decided via a public vote on the PCA website, which will remain open until 2pm on Thursday 2 September.
Men’s PCA Player of the Month
Another bumper month of men’s domestic cricket saw the conclusion of both The Hundred and the Royal London Cup, before four Vitality Blast quarter-finals preceded the first two days of the latest round of LV= Insurance County Championship fixtures.
The MVP Rankings have highlighted the contribution of cross-format players, as each of this month’s four men’s nominees have appeared in multiple competitions during August.
Here is a brief summary of their individual highlights this month:
Simon Harmer (Essex)
Back-to-back Overall MVP Simon Harmer is never far from the top of the MVP Rankings, and that has been the case once again this month as he has totalled 112 MVP points – the most of any men’s domestic player during the same time period.
The off-spinner’s consistent quality has enabled him to claim at least one wicket in each of his eight outings this month, and multiple wickets on five occasions, including 3-46 during the first innings of Essex’s ongoing County Championship fixture against Glamorgan. Harmer will be looking to win his second Player of the Month award of the season, having previously claimed the prize in May.
Liam Livingstone (Lancashire and Birmingham Phoenix)
Liam Livingstone caps off a highly successful August from an individual perspective, having already been named The Hundred MVP on the 21st of the month. In total, he has scored 99.3 MVP points from his eight appearances in August – second only behind Harmer in terms of men’s domestic cricket.
The 28-year-old has excelled across three separate competitions, his individual highlight coming during Phoenix’s final group stage fixture against Northern Superchargers on the 17th. During that game, Livingstone smashed an unbeaten 92 and claimed 3-25 to score 45.8 MVP points – the highest total in a single fixture during the men’s Hundred.
Tom Westley (Essex)
Tom Westley joins his teammate Harmer in being nominated for the August PCA Player of the Month, having scored 96.8 MVP points from his eight appearances this month.
Like Harmer, Westley was a consistent performer during Essex’s Royal London Cup campaign, eventually finishing third in the RLC MVP behind only Harmer and eventual champion Scott Borthwick. Westley passed 50 on two occasions in the competition in August, and also chipped in with the ball claiming seven wickets at 25.1 apiece.
Tim David (Surrey and Southern Brave)
This month’s men’s line-up is completed by Surrey and Southern Brave man Tim David, who scored 96.6 MVP points from his nine appearances during August.
The bulk of David’s MVP points tally derived from a sensational spell of form in the Royal London Cup which saw him make consecutive scores of 140 not out, 52 not out and 102 in the space of five days. David also proved an unlikely hero for Brave during the final stages of the men’s Hundred, producing a game-changing run out of Livingstone to reverse the direction of the final, having only been drafted into the squad for the eliminator fixture one day previously.
Essex Cricket Business Club
About the Business Club
The Essex Cricket Business Club (ECBC) is a new initiative created by the Commercial Team at the Cloud County Ground. The ECBC is the perfect introduction to the multitude of benefits a partnership with Essex County Cricket Club can bring.
Enjoy the opportunity to grow your network with a wide variety of like-minded businesses during regular networking sessions, engaging events and through a digital directory of ECBC Members. Bolster your brand awareness through access to a range of digital assets that leverage Essex Cricket’s large social media following and website traffic to get your brand exposure at one of the most successful cricket clubs in the country.
On top of that, you can experience the perks of the fine dining hospitality at the Cloud County Ground and corporate season tickets for your clients or guests.
The view from the inside
The offering
If you would like to enquire about a membership, please contact [email protected] | 01245 254 000
Thank you.
Essex Cricket Business Club Membership Enquiry Form
England v New Zealand: Final 100 Tickets Remaining
The Cloudfm County Ground will host international cricket once again this week as England return to face New Zealand on Wednesday 01 September, which starts at 6:30pm.
The final 100 tickets for this Vitality IT20 match are now on sale and can be booked by phoning the Club’s Membership & Ticketing Department on 01245 254010 before 5pm on Tuesday (31 August) and from 9am on Wednesday (01 September).
Ticket Prices:
| England Women | ||||||
| Ticket Type | ECCC Member | Adult | Student/Young Adult | Junior | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allocated Seat | £10.00 | £20.00 | £16.00 | £10.00 | ||
Match Preview: Glamorgan v Essex
Glamorgan v Essex
LV= Insurance County Championship
Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
Monday 30 August – Thursday 02 September
11am start
Essex resume the LV= Insurance County Championship campaign when the team travel to Wales to meet Glamorgan in Cardiff on Monday.
It is the third time this season that Essex have made the trip across the border and they will be hoping that the change of format from limited-overs cricket to the four-day variety will be more conducive in helping them return with a favourable result.
Two white-ball matches, in the Vitality Blast and Royal London Cup, ended with the home side victorious on both occasions so Essex will be hoping to make amends as they undertake red-ball cricket.
It will be the first time since July 11 that the team have competed in the 4-day format but even that match was abandoned after just a single day when a Derbyshire player tested positive for COVID-19.
Hear from McGrath:
Although his side are unable to challenge for the Championship title, Head Coach Anthony McGrath insists that the remaining four matches still carry a lot of importance.
“It’s obviously disappointing that we are not involved in the top division and although we played some good cricket at times, we just were not consistent enough which cost us our place in the top-tier,” he said.
“But each player has personal pride to play for, not only in his own performances but also that of Club. Essex will always prepare properly and go out to try and win whatever game in whatever competition we are involved with so playing in the second tier for the last few weeks of this season is no different.
“We have been used to arriving at this stage of the season and watching Essex challenging for titles but it’s not to be this time around.
“Our players are professional sportsmen and they thrive on the challenge to win games, and will be mindful of not letting either themselves or the Club down.
“It’s important that we finish the season as strongly as we can. The conference system was put into place for this year and nobody yet knows what will happen in 2022. It could be retained or we will return to two-division cricket so it’s important that we finish the season as strongly as in preparation for whatever is eventually decided for next year.”
Injury/Absentees News:
There are no new injuries concerns with Jamie Porter (side strain) and Shane Snater (hamstring) both returning to fitness after missing part of the Royal London Cup campaign.
Dan Lawrence also returns after being released by England following the third Test against India and back is in contention for a place in the Essex starting XI.
Squad:
Opposition:
Glamorgan finished their 10 matches in Group Three of the qualifying round in third place having recorded two wins and six draws to accrue 127 points. Lancashire and Yorkshire took the two Division slots from the section with 150 and 149 points respectively.
Both of the Welsh county’s successes came in low-scoring contests in Cardiff. They beat Kent with the match lasting just two days after the visitors scored 138 and 74 with the hosts replying with 197 and 19 without loss to secure a 10-wickets win in two days.
The other victory took a day longer in another contest where the ball mastered bat. Lancashire scored 173 and 164 whilst Glamorgan totalled 150 and then 188 for 4 to cross the finishing line with a day and 6 wickets to spare.
Three Glamorgan batsmen have passed 500 Championship runs so far this season, headed by Kiran Carlson with 790, ahead of David Lloyd (607) and Chris Cooke (544).
Pace bowlers Michael Hogan and South Africa-born Michael Neser have taken a combined tally of 51 Championship wickets this summer. Neser’s 23 scalps have been claimed an average of 16.78 and Hogan’s 28 victims @ 23.64.
One to Watch:
Right-hand middle-order batsman, Kiran Carlson is enjoying a superb season for his county. With a number of their players drafted into the Hundred, the 23-year-old took on the responsibility of leading the side in the Royal London Cup. It proved a fine appointment with the Cardiff-born lifting the trophy as Glamorgan beat Durham in the final.
Back in 2016 at the age of 18 years, Carlson becomes the youngest player to score a first-class century for Glamorgan in Essex’s final home match of the season at Chelmsford.
So far this season, he has blossomed in the red-ball format scoring 790 Championship runs @ 65.83.
Head-to-Head:
The teams last met in the County Championship back in 2016 when the fixture ended as a draw. Graham Napier returned 5 for 82 in the Glamorgan score’s first innings of 260. Essex responded with 313 thanks to 80 apiece from both Tom Westley and Ravi Bopara, whilst Timm van der Gugten claimed 5 for 90.
In Glamorgan’s second trip to the middle, Will Bragg posted an unbeaten 161 out of 386-6 declared to set the visitors 334 to win.
Essex lost their first three wickets for 46 and when opener Nick Browne was dismissed after scoring 71 , Essex were in trouble at 122 for 5. But Jesse Ryder (25*) and Ryan ten Doeschate (22*) prevented any further damage and with the score on 160 for 5, Glamorgan called off the hunt.
This match was the penultimate match of the season and bonus points secured Essex promotion into Division One.
In the 138 Championship clashes to date, Essex have won 45 of the contests and lost 27 matches.
Potential Milestones:
Simon Harmer needs 6 more wickets to reach 300 first-class wickets for Essex.
Adam Wheater requires 3 more victims to reach 150 first-class dismissals for Essex. He currently has 135 catches and 12 stumpings.
Ryan ten Doeschate requires a further 159 runs to reach 10,000 first-class career runs for Essex. He has also claimed 189 wickets for the county.
How To Watch:
Our Live Stream service will be available across all four days of this game from 11am, which also includes player stats, scorecards and clips throughout the day.
Access via the Essex Cricket Matchzone is available here.
