Preview: Kent v Warwickshire, County Championship

Glenn Maxwell is in line to make his Warwickshire first-class debut, having been included in a 12-player squad for Monday’s LV= Insurance County Championship clash at Kent.

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2023-07-09T16:29:22.000Z

Glenn Maxwell is in line to make his Warwickshire first-class debut, having been included in a 12-player squad for Monday’s LV= Insurance County Championship clash at Kent.

Known around the world as a destructive white ball all-rounder, the 18th all-time leading T20 run-scorer will add a stellar red ball record to a team that’s managing a few knocks and scrapes.

Dan Mousely is ruled out with a hand injury, whilst Danny Briggs (hamstring), Craig Miles (hamstring) and Liam Norwell remain unavailable. Hassan Ali has also joined up with the Pakistan Test squad ahead of their series with Sri Lanka.

Enter Maxwell, who averages just under 40 in first-class cricket, with seven centuries, including one Test ton and 77 wickets. The Victoria native has played in the County Championship three times with stints for Hampshire, Yorkshire and Lancashire.

“He gives us a wicket-taking threat with the ball,” said Robinson. “We’ve got Yatesy who’s developed nicely and Lintott if we want to go down that route. We feel we’ve got a lot of balance that we can use in the spinning department.

“He fits into the team fantastically and only since my early days at Sussex have I had an overseas who gives so much back to the group, in terms of off-the-pitch help and coaching. We’re very lucky to have him.”

Preview: Kent v Warwickshire, County Championship - Image 2

While the disappointment of Thursday’s Vitality Blast quarter-final heartbreak will linger, Robinson believes it’s important for his squad to process their emotions and prepare for a big push in red ball cricket.

The Bears, who sit in fourth and have played a game less than the teams above them, have another opportunity to close the gap on leaders Surrey.

“We can’t forget, because it’s not as easy as that,” added Robinson “What you have to do is process it and by the time you enter the pitch at 11am your head’s clear, ready for the job at hand and excited to win a game of red ball cricket.

We had a day off on Friday, practised today - which is part of that process - and travel Sunday, with a meeting where we look at the opposition in a bit more detail and how we want to play our cricket. When Monday comes we’re ready and it’s match day time.

“Kent have two overseas now and they’re stronger than when we last played them from a bowling point of view. They’ve got the option of playing a left-arm spinner if they felt they need to so it’s going to be a challenge.

“They’re a good team with a strong batting unit, who struggled early but have rallied and played some good cricket recently. It’s another test for us with the Kookaburra ball, again away from home which doesn’t seem right, but it’s what we’ve been given. We need to learn from our last game how we manage the ball and play to win.”

Squad

Will Rhodes (C) Ed BarnardJacob BethellHenry BrookesMichael BurgessAlex DaviesSam HainOlly Hannon-DalbyJake LintottGlenn MaxwellChris RushworthRob Yates

How to Follow

Members and supporters can follow the match live in our new-look Match Centre at edgbaston.com, which will include a free to watch Live Stream, with BBC commentary, and a live text commentary. You will need to log-in to your My Edgbaston account to watch.

Supporters can also watch the Live Stream and get instant push notifications of all wickets, innings and match results via the Edgbaston app, which is free to download on iOS and Android.

Match updates will also be available across the Club’s social media accounts, simply search for @WarwickshireCCC.