Leicestershire 139
2Derbyshire108
3Glamorgan97
4Gloucestershire88
5Northamptonshire72
6Middlesex70
7Lancashire66
8Kent65
1Nottinghamshire115
2Surrey105
3Sussex95
4Warwickshire93
5Somerset92
6Durham84
7Hampshire82
8Essex75
9Yorkshire59
10Worcestershire54
For those settling down to watch Jimmy Anderson zip in from Blackpool’s North End,hold your horses. A slight technical hitch – a missing wire that holds the whole thing together – means the stream is not flowing. Things should be working after lunch, but Scott Read and co will be still be on the radio.
Bristol:Gloucestershire v DerbyshireGloucs won the toss and will bat
Blackpool:Lancashire v KentLancs won the toss and will field
Grace Road:Leicestershire v GlamorganGlamorgan won the toss and will bat
Wantage Road:Northamptonshire v MiddlesexMiddx won the toss and will bat
Chester le Street:Durham vSussexSussex won the toss and will bat
Chelmsford:Essexv HantsEssex won the toss and will bat
Trent Bridge:Nottinghamshirev YorkshireNotts won the toss and will bat
Edgbaston:Warwickshirev SomersetSomerset won the toss and will bat
New Road:Worcestershire v SurreyWorcs won the toss and will bat
Very sad news fromGloucestershire.Just a year after he announced he was suffering from Motor Neurone Disease, David Lawrence, the first British born Black cricketer to play for England, has died.
David Payne, spoke on behalf of the GloucestershireCricketplaying staff:
“I’d like to offer our sincerest condolences to Syd’s family at this truly devastating time.
“Syd was a true legend of the Club and someone every player had immense respect for - not just because of the fantastic cricketer he was, but for the amazing person he was, and what he gave to this Club both on and off the field.
“Sharing last year’s T20 success with Syd is a memory we will never forget and will cherish forever.
“Syd will always be an inspiration to us all, and we thank him for everything he did for our great game.”
Good morning andwelcome back! Lather up for two weeks of midsummer cricket, Kookaburra balls and skylarks.
While Jofra Archer flexes his bowling boots at Chester le Street, I’m at Blackpool [never say the Guardian misses a big story] , where the wind is buffering the tent and Jimmy Anderson, in his 300th first-class game, is captainingLancashirefor the first time (while Marcus Harris is on paternity leave).
Elsewhere, there has been a proliferation of short term signings. Young Indian batter Tilak Varma joins Hampshire, Pakistan batter Abdullah Shafique joins Yorkshire, Western Australian offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli joins Warwickshire and other Australian offspinner Todd Murphy signs on the dotted line forGloucestershire.
Over on the outfield, Jimmy Anderson is being presented with a bottle of champagne for his 300th first-class game, and play starts round the grounds in half an hour.