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24
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The nearly men for a number of years, Somerset will be
hoping and praying that they can finally secure glory in
the upcoming season. The new `hands-on’ style of
leadership coming from Dave Nosworthy could be the
final piece of the puzzle.
A mixture of youth and experience is what Somerset
can utilise. Twins Craig and Jamie Overton along with
Adam Dibble are working their way through the
bowling ranks which could lead to the task of bowling
teams out twice at Taunton easier than in
previous years.
A fully fit Marcus Trescothick for the whole campaign
could prove crucial. Added to young batsman such as
Alex Barrow and Jos Buttler it could see them knocking
on the door once again. One problem could be if the
run-machine Nick Compton is away all summer with
England putting more pressure on the shoulders of
county stalwarts Trescothick and James Hildreth.
Ins: none
Outs: Kevin O'Brien (REL, had been on contract for
Twenty20), Steve Snell (REL)
Fixture dates Vs Nottinghamshire: 2-5 August at
Taunton and 24-27 September at Trent Bridge
One to watch: Craig Overton- The England Lions
seamer will be looking to use his skills from the tour
Down Under to turn himself into a formidable force in
2013. Still in his teens he is already bowling up and
around the 90mph mark. A useful technique when
batting is also an asset that Somerset will aim to use
alongside the all-round abilities of Peter Trego.
County Championship Odds: 5/1
Will they finish second again? Almost definitely, yes
All eyes in the cricketing world centred on Surrey when
the club announced the signing of veteran Australian
pantomime villain Ricky Ponting for two months of the
coming season. He will be providing cover for a certain
Graeme Smith, who committed his next three summers
to the club in November. Vikram Solanki has also
moved to Surrey from Worcestershire, after being
enticed with an offer to end his career at the KIA Oval.
Experienced batsman Mark Ramprakash has moved
into retirement and is currently batting coach at
Middlesex. Noisy neighbours Sussex have snapped up
both Rory Hamilton-Brown and Chris Jordan, while
all-rounder Matthew Spriegel has moved to Northants.
Last summer, the county only managed a seventh
placed finish in Division One but with the influx of
talent to the south-east, Surrey are ready to be
considered title contenders rather than keeping one eye
over their shoulder.
Ins: Vikram Solanki (Worcestershire), Gary Keedy
(Lancashire)
Outs: Mark Ramprakash (RET, has become Middlesex
batting coach), Matt Spriegel (Northants), Tom
Lancefield (REL), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Rory
Hamilton-Brown (Sussex)
One to watch: Ricky Ponting. Whether he will set the
championship on fire remains to be seen, but rest
assured it’ll be hard to take your eyes off the former
Australia captain.
Fixture dates vs Notts: May 15th – 18th (home) July
8th – 11th (away)
Title odds: 6/1
Can they win it? Surrey’s ability to capture both Shaun
Tait and Ricky Ponting is a statement of intent of their
title hopes. Whether they will be enough to lift them
above mid-table level is another question.
PONTING: SQUINTER
MICK NEWELL
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