Team for Lancashire on Sunday
Anyone who has listened to this week's podcast will know that I found picking a side harder than ever. I'd really like to hear your thoughts. Does Hildy play, does Smeed get his debut, should we give one of the young quicks his debut?
Please let me have either (or both) the side you would pick and the side you think Jason Kerr will. Together with your rationale.
I promise to use some of your input in tomorrow's preview.
Thanks
Steve
Comments
Davies, Lammonby, Azhar, Abell, Hildreth, Goldsworthy, Green, VDM, Davey, De Lange, Baker
I am not picking Smeed as I don’t want his confidence affected before Finals Day, I would however pick him for the last CC game. It’s a great time to give Sonny Baker some experience and I think Ben Green deserves a couple of games to try and determine if he has a role to play in red ball cricket moving forward. I would get Banton in the nets for a week smashing white balls everywhere. Hildreth shifts down to 5, I am loathe to drop him at this point but it will be interesting to see if there is any announcement on his future at the end of the season. De Lange is lucky to keep his place but I think he offers more of a threat than Brooks.
I think Somerset will probably pick Brooks instead of Baker, and possibly Banton instead of Green but hard to say - the selection has been a bit confusing recently!
Selection for the Lancashire match will be difficult and made more so if Overton and Leach are "allowed" to play assuming both fit and well in view of the Test match being cancelled. So assuming that both are fit I would certainly pick them both as we have missed Overton desperately.
It is however the batting that has let us down - in the last 5 innings, no Somerset batsman has made 50 - highest score 36 by de Lange and 35 by Leach v Notts. Not what you really want when the bowlwrs are achieving higher scores than the batsmen.
The other unknown is the type of pitch prepared at Taunton. If it is a pick for seam bowlers then my side would be in batting order roughly: Davies, Azhar, Abell, Hildreth, Lammonby or Smeed, Goldsworthy, Green, Overton, Leach, Davey, de Lange.
Can't make up my mind about Lammonby or Smeed - Lammonby offers a few overs of something different but his average of 13.50 from 18 innings in red ball is not inspiring while Smeed deserves an opportunity. de Lange creeps in in front of Brooks purely bacause he took 4 wickets (albeit 3 lower order) v Yorkshire but Brooks really should have played at Scarborough.
If the pitch is likely to take a modicum of spin (not too much so as to incur the pitch inspector to refuel his car and pack a bag), then vd Merwe could replace de Lange. either way Goldsworthy should be restored to the team after being unceremoniously dumped after one poor match in which he didn't bowl one over out of 142.
Sadly Bartlett and Banton have not been considered as both are out of form although both fine players when in decent nick. If somerst spend over 100 overs in the field then Green or Lammonby (if selected) could open but Abell should stay at 3.
Baker is a possibility but let's see how we go in this one and if all is completely lost then play him at Edgbaston.
Hildreth just about squeezes in although his red ball average of 23.77 is poor and if you take out his 107 v Surrey and 64 v Gloucestershire, then his average is 16.06 which is even poorer for a player of his talent and experience. It's a tough call to leave him out but Lammonby and Smeed could play but that is a potential risk.
Whoever plays, we are all right behind them and hope that we bat first make 500 and bowl the Red Rose out for 200 twice!
Come on Somerset!
😁
So the squad has been named (everyone except the coach driver I think - well it is a home game):
Tom Abell, Azhar Ali, Tom Banton, George Bartlett, Jack Brooks, Josh Davey, Steve Davies, Marchant de Lange, Lewis Goldsworthy, Ben Green, Lewis Gregory, James Hildreth, Tom Lammonby, Jack Leach, Craig Overton and Roelof van der Merwe.
My starting XI would by process of elimination be:
Steve Davies or Ben Green (depending if we bat first or second) Tom Lammonby, Azhar Ali, Tom Abell, James Hildreth, Lewis Goldsworthy, Ben Green (or Steve Davis) Craig Overton, Josh Davey, Jack Leach and Marchant de Lange.and I would omit:
Well this mornings news sort of knocked that out of the water didn’t if