Derbyshire v Nottinghamshire - Better results ahead for Derbyshire?

Nottinghamshire players celebrate the fall of a Derbyshire wicket

Well, the end came a little later than I expected, admittedly with assistance from the weather and thanks to some sterling last morning resistance from Dan Redfern and David Wainwright. Both will benefit from the runs they made, but were undone by a fine bowler in Stuart Broad, perhaps the only time this year he will be able to assist his county.

After three games we have a draw and two defeats, the natives are getting restless and there’s much gnashing of teeth. But the season starts now, with matches coming up that we have a more realistic chance of winning. Don’t get me wrong, Yorkshire and Sussex are good sides, or they wouldn’t be in the top tier, but it is easier to see us beating them than the last three opponents.

Having said that, Yorkshire chased down 339 to beat Durham today, largely thanks to a magnificent 182 from England‘s Joe Root. It is patently clear that the England men make a massive difference to their counties and such a shame that the county game is largely deprived of their services due to central contracts.

We should keep in mind a few things before being overly critical of Derbyshire’s start. We have played three very strong sides and the fact that we lost the toss in every match was undoubtedly a factor. I would dearly love to see Wayne Madsen win the toss at Headingley on Monday, as our chances of a win would then rise by around 20% in my humble opinion.

Also, remember that a few players did get runs under their belt against Nottinghamshire and a fast bowler of genuine class. Again, that will be a morale booster for them as we move on with our season and we could do with replication of that up north.

Finally – and before making too many demands for change – we don’t have too many options with the requisite experience. If things don’t improve by July or August, I could see the likes of Burgoyne, Alex Hughes and Slater getting opportunities, but not, in the four-day game, before then. I still think that the lads in the current side will come good, but Headingley would be a fine place to start.

Tomorrow, I will look at that game in a little more detail.