Derbyshire head back to Barbados

Want to know what's happening at your county? Interested in how your rivals are faring? Look no further than ecb.co.uk's county-by-county page

Last season’s LV= County Championship Division Two winners Derbyshire will return to Barbados for their pre-season preparations in March.

Karl Krikken’s team will jet off to the Caribbean for the fourth consecutive year on March 11 and are set to face both domestic county sides and local opposition before returning to England 12 days later.

Derbyshire are scheduled to play a couple of two-day fixtures, a 40-over match and a Twenty20 tournament at the Kensington Oval, and Krikken hopes the tour will prepare his side for the 2013 domestic campaign.

“Barbados is a tried and tested pre-season venue for several counties and it provides ideal preparation ahead of a challenging domestic campaign,” he said.

Last season's LV= County Championship Division Two winners Derbyshire will travel to Barbados for the fourth straight year, where they will compete in a tournament at the Kensington Oval

“To be guaranteed good weather and, consequently, time on the field is extremely important for our players at this critical time of the year.

“We’ve certainly felt the benefit from previous visits and it’s telling that the 2012 trophy winners - Hampshire (Friends Life t20 and Clydesdale Bank 40 champions), Warwickshire (County Championship Division One winners) and Derbyshire - all toured Barbados during pre-season (last year), as did Yorkshire, who won promotion from Division Two and reached Friends Life t20 finals day.

“It’s an intense itinerary and one that gives us the best possible chance of hitting the ground running for Division One cricket in 2013, as well as giving our supporters some meaningful cricket to follow as the season approaches.”

Click here for all the latest news from the domestic cricket scene, including exclusive interviews, team news, match reports and photo galleries