Hampshire Season Preview 2013

Mar 15 2013

Will David Balcombe be well on his way to 50 wickets by the end of April?

2013 is set to be another exciting season as the Royals look to defend their Yorkshire Bank 40 and Friends Life t20 crowns as well as push on to LV= County Championship promotion back to Division One. But what are their chances of doing all three?

As we count down to the season, cricket writer and broadcaster as well as long-time ageasbowl.com contributor, fan and member of the Club, Jane Cable has been taking a slightly tongue-in cheek, month-by-month look at the Royals’ 2013 prospects. Read on to find out more...

APRIL:

After three warm up games over the Easter period, Hampshire’s season proper begins at home in the Championship against Leicestershire on the 10th. When the teams met at the end of last August the match was most memorable (from a Hampshire point of view) for a last wicket stand of 168 from Chris Wood and David Balcombe. This time the pair will be looking to bowl their opponents out on a juicy early season pitch.

April is a proper Championship month. Next come newly relegated Worcestershire at home starting on the 24th (watch out for Moeen Ali - dangerously close to 5,000 First Class runs and 100 FC wickets) and Essex at Chelmsford. The nail biting finish in this game last year was largely down to Adam Wheater’s innings; thankfully, this time he’s on our side.

• Jane’s 2013 April Highlights: Wood picks up where he left off, having scored maiden milestones in his last two appearances against both Leicestershire (105 not out in 2012) and Worcestershire (56 not out in 2011). This time he goes one better by picking up a “Daddy” hundred against the Foxes and a double-ton against the Pears. By the end of the month he is being tipped for an Ashes call-up, batting at 3.
• Man of the Month: David Balcombe – should be on the way to another 50 Championship wickets before the month is out.
• Long Range Forecast: Drier than average

MAY:

May starts with a Friday night floodlit game at “Fortress” Chelmsford, which follows on from the Championship match. The crowd most definitely won’t be on our side and there’s a possibility Alastair Cook will be available. We’ve had better starts in the 40 over competition, certainly.

We play a lot of Yorkshire Bank 40 cricket this month but Scotland come next – at the Ageas Bowl on bank holiday Monday (5th) – so, barring disasters, that should be points in the bag. The only real issue is whether Michael Carberry can better his highest List A score of 148* against them [pictured below].

At the end of the month Lancashire visit us for both a four-day and one-day game, starting with a floodlit YB40 on the 22nd. The Lightning came top of Group A in last year’s competition and really excelled in this format – particularly opening batsman Stephen Moore. Seeing him trudge back to the pavilion early would be nice.

• Jane’s 2013 May Highlights: All the build up to the Lancashire clash focuses on former Royals, Kabir Ali and Simon Katich’s return to the Ageas Bowl but, in the days before, Ali falls asleep while icing his knee and the resulting frost-bite sees him out of action for three months. Meanwhile, Australia continue sacking players at an alarming rate and captain, Michael Clarke is forced to beg Katich to return to the National set-up. Shorn of their best players, the Red Rose county fall to an innings defeat – Hampshire top of Division Two after five matches.
• Man of the Month:  George Bailey – makes his mark before being called into the Australian squad for the ICC Champions Trophy.
• Long Range Forecast: Could be wet.

JUNE:

A mixed bag of cricket this month with the start of the Friends Life t20 campaign delayed until after the Champions Trophy finishes on the 23rd. Hampshire’s month starts with two Championship matches at the Ageas Bowl; first Kent on the 5th (with any luck James Tredwell will be on England duty) then Gloucester on the 12th. Although we drew twice against Kent last year I have a hunch we can collect some valuable points here.

The joy of the 40-over competition is that the groups are re-drawn every year so we get to see some new opposition. Derbyshire Falcons land at the Ageas Bowl on the 18th and the one to watch here is all rounder Wes Durston. Keep him under control and we should take the points.

Twenty20 starts at home against Surrey Lions on the 26th and we can but hope that Liam Dawson’s bunny KP is free to play for his club that night.

• Jane’s 2013 June Highlights: A matter of weeks after scoring the winning runs as England gloriously claim the Champions Trophy on home turf, Pietersen gets a hero’s reception as he walks out to bat upon his return to the Ageas Bowl with Surrey. Up first to bowl to him is Liam Dawson, who turns one square only for KP to play a perfect forward defensive, dabbing it out into the off side for no run. Next ball, Daws slips and loops a straight one high in the air, only for his former team-mate to be beaten all ends up and walk back to the changing room quacking. It continues to be hard being KP.
• Man of the Month: Michael Carberry – it is almost statistically impossible to score 1,000 First Class runs by the end of May, but Carbs reaches the landmark in early June.
• Long Range Forecast: Wet and mild

JULY:

Not a totally Twenty20 month as Hampshire have two Championship games; Kent and Glamorgan both away. Glamorgan are the only team we beat twice in the competition last year and their rebuilding appears far from complete – more points here, I hope.

But the shortest form of the game will dominate. We play Sussex away (5th) and home (12th) - hopefully we will actually get to play them this year as, in 2012, both matches ended in wash outs... in fact, the Hove game never got started! We then race around South-East England before finishing our group matches at the Ageas Bowl on the 31st. Middlesex Panthers are our opposition and their Twenty20 form has never been the same since Shaun Udal retired. Now would not be the time for their resurgence!

Meanwhile The Ashes start on 10th July – but we’re not too worried about that, are we?

• Jane’s 2013 July Highlights: Without the services of England’s Ashes star and 2012 FLt20 winner, Chris Wood, the Royals’ Twenty20 campaign gets off to a stuttering start only for back to back victories over south-coast rivals Sussex to get them back in the mix. Dimi Mascarenhas [pictured, above right, with fetching ginger hair] is MoM in both fixtures and celebrates by dying his hair all the colours of the rainbow... however, even his new “do” is eclipsed every time he smiles that great, big beaming smile of his.
• Man of the Month: Dimi Mascarenhas – it is t20, after all.
• Long Range Forecast: A scorcher

AUGUST:

The cricketing month starts on the 2nd when Glamorgan visit the Ageas Bowl, hopefully offering Hampshire fans four days of relaxation after a closely fought t20 campaign. I have nothing against the Welsh club – in fact I have a very soft spot for them – it’s just that cricket hasn’t been their strongest suit in recent years.

In the Yorkshire Bank 40 we face Essex and Surrey at home and both matches are likely to be hard fought. Our last group match is at Derbyshire on the 26th and we’re in a difficult group this year with Surrey, under the captaincy of seasoned internationals Graeme Smith and Ricky Ponting, looking most likely to make it through.

And what of t20? It’s hard to imagine a Finals Day without the Hampshire Royals, isn’t it? On the other hand I am far too superstitious to present it to you as a fait accompli.

• Jane’s 2013 August Highlights: Ponting, by this point batting at three for Australia alongside Katich and Justin Langer, leaves Surrey in the lurch and their match against the Royals at the Ageas Bowl (15th) is a cake-walk for the home side. Elsewhere Hampshire’s travel to Scotland for their YB40 away fixture and the match isn’t rained off (and if you believe that, you’ll believe anything!)
• Man of the Month: Danny Briggs – another stunning Twenty20 campaign from the spinner sees him picked for England’s T20 International against Australia at the Ageas Bowl. He celebrates with a maiden five-fer in International colours.
• Long Range Forecast: Still scorching

SEPTEMBER:

First we face Northamptonshire at the Ageas Bowl and, by this stage of the season, Lee Daggett and David Balcombe could be vying for the most wickets in the second division.

After that, Hampshire travel first to Worcestershire and then to Leicestershire. The former are likely to be in the title race too, along with ourselves and Lancashire, so every point we earn at New Road (provided it isn’t under water) will be especially valuable.

Once again, our last home game of the season will be against Essex and this year we will need to win the match to secure promotion. In 2012 we scraped a first innings lead but then Owais Shah’s patient 161 did for us and only Jimmy Adams and Liam Dawson were able to stand up to the visitors’ attack, the captain carrying his bat.

• Jane’s 2013 September Highlights: Having suffered so badly with the rain in late 2012, New Road succumbs, once again, to the wrath of the weather gods but, with both sides chasing valuable promotion points, the captains elect to decide the contest with a 4 x 100 swimming relay. After a strong backstroke leg from Michael Bates, James Tomlinson’s breaststroke falters and Sean Ervine’s butterfly sees the team fall behind. But a rousing final freestyle leg from David Griffiths sees his side win by a whisker, Hants take the 16 points and promotion is all but assured!
• Man of the Month: Jimmy Adams [pictured, above left] – as he lifts the second division trophy and closes in on his 10,000th First Class run.
• Long Range Forecast: Mild but wet

Hampshire Cricket memberships offer the equivalent of a “season-ticket” to all domestic cricket at the Ageas Bowl*, priority booking and discounted tickets for England’s One Day International matches against New Zealand (2 June) and Australia (16 September) as well as their T20 International, also against the Aussies (29 August) at The Ageas Bowl**, complimentary guest passes and discounts around the ground.

2013 Hampshire Cricket Standard and Premium Membership is already available online, by calling 0870 243 0291 or visiting the ticket office, in person, during normal office hours. Tickets for International matches at The Ageas Bowl can be bought now via the same methods. Why not come to all three England fixtures and save £15 with the Down Under Package (click the link to find out more)?

* Premium Membership only. Standard Membership precludes Twenty20 matches.
** Priority booking period has now expired