Preview: Somerset v Warwickshire, Metro Bank One Day Cup

Warwickshire open their Metro Bank One Day Cup account at Somerset on Friday (4 Aug) with a blend of seasoned pro’s and exciting young talent hoping to bring home the silverware.

briggford

2023-08-03T12:28:41.000Z

Warwickshire open their Metro Bank One Day Cup account at Somerset on Friday (4 Aug) with a blend of seasoned pro’s and exciting young talent hoping to bring home the silverware.

Club Captain Will Rhodes leads the side at Taunton for the floodlight encounter (2pm start) alongside experienced heads including Olly Hannon-Dalby, Jake Lintott, Michael Burgess, Rob Yates, Ed Barnard and Craig Miles.

That’s a combined List A experience of more than 250 matches.

They’re joined by Ethan Brookes – who hit 142 and 147 in two 2nd XI county matches last month – and Hamza Shaikh who blasted a quickfire 50 at Sutton Coldfield CC on Tuesday (1 Aug) against a Warwickshire League Select XI.

Kai Smith (18) and 17-year-old Theo Wylie – both handed rookie contracts for the tournament – are also included in the 13-man squad.

And First Team Coach Mark Robinson welcomes back Liam Norwell as the seamer – who picked up a back injury in pre-season – continues his recovery after bowling four overs at Sutton on Tuesday.

The Bears face also Derbyshire, Durham, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire, Sussex and Worcestershire in Group B with the top three qualifying for the knockout stages.

Mark Robinson, said "We've really enjoyed our 50-over cricket in the last few years. We've gone to different grounds and had some good crowds at Edgbaston. We've come close to qualifying and now want to take that extra step this year.

“What will be different this year is we have some bowlers coming back from injury, trying to get back to fitness, like Liam Norwell and Craig Miles.

“There are always subplots like Hamza Shaikh and Kai Smith coming through last year and Will Rhodes and Michael Burgess looking to press their cases for inclusion in T20.”

And he said it’s an opportunity for young guns to shine and challenge for more senior starts.

It was in the 50-over comp against Yorkshire at York in 2021 that Dan Mousley and Jake Bethell first properly showcased their talents with a dazzling partnership of 115 in 69 balls, while Rob Yates top scored in the competition last year for the Bears with 412 runs.

"Dan and Jake showed what they could so that day and part of Rob Yates' progression into the T20 team was what he did in the 50-over format,” added Robinson. “They are three who used this competition to forward their aspirations.

“We will be missing some players to The Hundred which will again give opportunities to others.

“We'll have a few more senior players available than in previous years but there will be opportunities for younger players like Ethan Brookes who hasn't had a first-team game this season but has done well in this comp in the last two years.

"We want to see our young players coming through into the first team in the T20 and Championship, like Mousley and Bethell have, which is the ultimate goal. It’s part of their development and that's the beautiful thing about this competition.”

Squad

Ed BarnardEthan BrookesMichael BurgessGeorge GarrettOlly Hannon-DalbyJake LintottLiam NorwellCraig MilesWill RhodesHamza ShaikhKai SmithTheo WylieRob Yates

How to Follow

Members and supporters can follow the match live in our Match Centre at edgbaston.com, which will include a free to watch Live Stream, with BBC commentary, and a live text commentary.

Supporters can get involved by sending their match day comments and thoughts on Twitter via @WarwickshireCCC and we’ll publish the best ones on our live text commentary in the Match Centre.

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.