Derbyshire still hope Abbott will be added to attack
DERBYSHIRE remain optimistic of adding Australian fast bowler Sean Abbott to their playing squad for the 2021 county cricket season.
Both he and countryman Ben Mcdermott were signed to come to the Incora County Ground last year – before the pandemic turned the world upside down.
Their contracts were deferred, rather than cancelled, as Derbyshire took steps to protect the club’s finances against the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak, and wicketkeeper-batsman Mcdermott has confirmed that he will be coming to England as planned.
Abbott’s future is still in the air – though the good news for Derbyshire supporters is that the reason is not financial.
The 28-year-old has had an outstanding summer for New South Wales to earn selection for Australia’s Test and limited-overs squads for the current series against India. International commitments are the biggest potential barrier in the way of Abbott coming to Derbyshire this season.
“We are still keen to have Sean playing for us next season and he is still keen to come to us,” said chief executive Ryan Duckett.
“We are just waiting to see about his other commitments before we can confirm he is on his way.
“In the last 12-18 months he has shown what a good player he is and I’m sure he would be a great signing for us.
“We are hoping to know for sure in the next month. If it doesn’t work out, we will look elsewhere but I’m optimistic Sean will be a part of what I think will be a really strong squad next season.”
Abbott, as well as being a very lively and effective bowler, has really developed as a batsman, too. He made a maiden firstclass century for NSW against Tasmania last summer and, at the time of his Aussie call-up in November, had emerged from the first half of the Sheffield Shield season with a batting average of 130.50, as well as 14 wickets at 17.92.
Mcdermott has recently been flailing the ball to all parts for Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash and struck an unbeaten first-class century for Australia A against India last month.
He has been signed primarily for his limited-overs batting in the Vitality Blast and the RL50 next summer but the plan is that the 26-year-old will come to England in April with a view to playing for Derbyshire for the start of the County Championship as well.
Counties are allowed to sign three overseas players, though they can only play two in the first-class competition.
Derbyshire have already signed Zimbabwe-born Dustin Melton as an overseas player for 2021 and, hopefully, Abbott will be added to their options.
Melton, who showed promise for the county last summer when he was registered as a Kolpak, is working towards becoming England qualified and the time he spent with Ockbrook & Borrowash in the County League nudges that day a little closer.
Brexit has meant that the day of the Kolpak is no more but two of the other players who played for Derbyshire last season under that rule will be able to stay.
South Africans Leus du Plooy and Michael Cohen both hold passports for EU nations through their ancestry – du Plooy’s is Hungarian and Cohen’s is French – and so are eligible to be registered as non-england qualified local players.
Because they lived and worked in the UK before Brexit, they are entitled to stay.
The only loser in the new post-brexit landscape for Derbyshire is Ravi Rampaul, the Trinidadian who played as a Kolpak in 2018 and 2019 but was not able to play at all last season because of Covid restrictions.
He is now out of contract and is unlikely to return.
“That’s a pity for Ravi, because he was outstanding for us in 2019 and was a really good club man, on and off the field,” added Duckett. “It’s a shame for us that he left without the supporters having had the chance to thank him for everything he did.”
In common with every other sports club and most businesses in general, Derbyshire have faced many tough decisions since the first lockdown last March.
Duckett estimates lost revenue of £1.7m, which is a huge chunk of finance for the club, but because of swift actions, in deferring the overseas contracts and taking advantage of Government support, they have avoided a major crisis.
The support of sponsors and members has also been crucial but the club did have to cut 11 full-time jobs off the field – 40% of their workforce – to see out the storm.
However, with the roll-out of the Covid vaccine, Duckett is hopeful of a return to some measure of normality for Derbyshire this summer.
“We are in a reasonably good position, even though we are still going into a bit of an uncertain year,” he added.
“The hope is that we will be able to welcome the crowds back in the ground for cricket and that we can also go ahead with developing our events revenue as well, although I’m sure there will still be some restrictions. If we can do that, we still have reason to be optimistic this summer.”