Key events
Rain at Blackpool, Essex 12-1. Rain still at Sophia Gardens. Could be a day for brollies up and down – this is the Met Office’s best guess:
“After a mostly fine start, it will quickly cloud over with rain across the southwest, moving northeast during the day. Some heavy showers expected across Scotland. Breezy, especially in the southwest. Warm in the east but cooler in the southwest.”
We’ve got a delayed start at Sophia Gardens, elsewhere only two wickets have fallen as I type – Rory Burns here at The Oval, Essex 13-1, and Nick Browne, done by Bailey/de Grandhomme at lovely Stanley Park – Essex 8-1.
In lovely news for those who have followed his career since he was wet behind the ears, the Notts captain today is Haseeb Hameed, with Steven Mullaney injured.
Not the start the Champions were hoping for, while people cleared their throats and rifled for their sandwiches, Rory Burns lbw to Hutton first ball. Surrey 0 for 1.
Is this the start of a beautiful homecoming?
I’ve got Kyra Sethna-Mcintosh with me today, on a Guardian internship, and she will take over the blog a little bit later. Out on The Oval field, the mowers are pushed to and fro, to and fro, and the groundstaff dust the wickets.
DIVISION TWO TABLE
1 Durham (8) 131
2 Leicestershire (8) 95
3 Sussex (8) 94
4 Worcestershire (8) 84
5 Glamorgan (8) 84
6 Yorkshire (7) 68
7 Gloucestershire (8) 60
8 Derbyshire (7) 51
DIVISION ONE TABLE
1 Surrey (played 8) 129
2 Essex (8) 106
3 Hants (8) 103
4 Warwicks (7) 93
5 Lancs (7) 88
6 Somerset (8) 88
7 Nottinghamshire (8) 78
8 Kent (8) 72
9 Middlesex (7) 51
10 Northants (7) 39
Preamble
Good morning! The morning after the weekend before, with both the women’s and men’s Ashes alive, we return to the main event – summer County Championship frolics.
Lots has happened since Surrey lost to Lancashire in the last round, just to throw a few doughnuts in the air – Dom Bess is on loan with… Somerset, Paul Nixon has come to an agreement with Leicestershire, leaving Grace Road after five and a half years and Jamie Overton plays his first red-ball game of the year.
Time to grab a coffee at a sun-dappled Oval, where Notts face a Surrey side determined for victory after that defeat by Lancs. Back shortly.
Fixtures
DIVISION ONE
Canterbury: Kent v Warwickshire
Blackpool: Lancashire v Essex
Merchant Taylors’ School: Middlesex v Northamptonshire
Taunton: Somerset v Hampshire
The Oval Surrey v Notts
DIVISION TWO
The Riverside: Durham v Gloucestershire
Sophia Gardens: Glamorgan v Leicestershire
Hove: Sussex v Derbyshire
The New Road: Worcestershire v Yorkshire
