Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Championship is tweaked
ESSEX will defend both their County Championship and Bob Willis Trophy titles next season, after an agreement was reached over another tweak to the first-class structure.
The two-division championship, which Essex won in 2019, was shelved due to the coronavirus lockdown this summer, replaced by three regional conferences and a five-day Lord’s final as Essex, once again, came out on top ahead of Somerset.
With great uncertainty over what restrictions may be in place next summer, a hybrid solution has been struck for 2021, with 14 County Championship fixtures scheduled – up from five this year – starting in groups before being sorted into performance-related divisions.
The winners of the top division will be named county champions, before a showpiece final at the home of cricket for the Bob Willis Trophy.
The proposals were agreed by the 18 county chairmen, with a twothirds majority rather than a unanimous decision required. This model is intended as a one-off, with the future shape of the competition subject to game-wide consultation.
The default position going into those discussions will be a twodivision format, slightly altering the status quo by moving from nine teams in each to ten in the top flight and eight in the bottom.
ECB chairman Ian Watmore said: “I am delighted that the counties have been able to reach this agreement less than three weeks after Essex won the Bob Willis Trophy final at Lord’s.”
Next year’s groups, seeded on firstclass results over the past two years and making provision for derbies where appropriate, are shown below:
Group 1: Essex, Warwickshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Worcestershire, Durham.
Group 2: Somerset, Hampshire, Surrey, Gloucestershire, Middlesex, Leicestershire.
Group 3: Kent, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Northamptonshire, Glamorgan, Sussex.