Barry McCarthy & Ryan Davies are the two changes to Durham’s squad for the floodlit Specsavers County Championship match against Warwickshire (2pm start).
Jon Lewis’ side are targeting a greatly improved showing after a disappointing three-day defeat against Sussex on the South Coast.
Stuart Poynter’s Ireland call-up for the India T20 series prompts Davies’ return behind the stumps, while McCarthy missed out on the international side but is expected to make a return for Durham with Josh Coughlin dropping out of the squad.
Michael Richardson, James Weighell & Brydon Carse remain missing through injury, though Paul Collingwood came through the game at Arundel & will lead the side.
Durham’s maiden foray into pink ball cricket was severely hampered by the weather last season, a draw against Worcestershire in which the hosts were saved by the elements.
But with a much improved forecast for this week, head coach Jon Lewis is hoping his side embrace the challenge & is keen to see any differences in the ball compared to this time last year.
“I’m sure they’ve tried to improve and adapt the ball that was used from last year. It wasn’t perfect, it was bowler friendly to start then it was like someone let the air out of it,” he said.
“So it will be interesting to see how much it has improved. The damp weather we had in the game here last year made it very tricky with the new ball. It was very tough to bat against.”
Squad vs Warwickshire (25-28 June)
Last Time Out
Durham (207 & 195/3) drew with Warwickshire (381/8d)
An excellent rearguard effort on the final day from Mark Stoneman & Scott Borthwick saw Durham safely to a draw at Emirates Riverside, the two sides’ last meeting in 2016.
Put into bat, Durham recorded a lowly 207 all out with Michael Richardson making 55. From there, Warwickshire hammered home the advantage.
It was largely thanks to Ian Westwood’s gritty century, his 127 using up 264 balls & over six hours at the crease as the visitors built a big lead.
Weather interruptions on Day Three denied them chance to extend their lead too much with only eight overs possible.
They added 37 on the fourth morning before declaring for a lead of 174 & had their tails up when Keaton Jennings was dismissed without scoring.
However, the pair of Stoneman & Borthwick put on 153 for the second wicket. Both fell to the unusual sight of Rikki Clarke’s off spin, but their stand ensured the captains shook hands before the scheduled close of play.
Tickets
Tickets are available to buy in advance for each day, priced at £12 adults & £5 juniors. These can be purchased from the Box Office on 0844 499 4466, through the website or in-person.
Advance tickets for tomorrow’s first day (Monday, 25 June) are available online only up until midnight.
On-the-day prices are £15 adults & £5 juniors, available at Gate Two.
Gates open at 1pm for a 2pm start.
Match Coverage
The Club were pleased to announce live streaming for the remainder of our home 2018 Specsavers County Championship fixtures during the Derbyshire match.
To access the live stream, visit the link below & sign up to a free account. We are still working on a solution to add the live BBC commentary in the near future.
Live match highlights are available through the ‘Match Highlights’ section of the website, with live commentary available via BBC Sport online with BBC Newcastle’s Martin Emmerson.
Updates & video clips will also be available via the Club’s Twitter account.