Adams expects county scrap

Chris Adams with the LV County Championship in 2007

Sussex begin their bid for a third straight LV County Championship at the Rose Bowl on Wednesday with captain Chris Adams expecting another tumultuous tussle for the title.

Last September, as the final round of the 2007 season began, five Division One teams had a theoretical chance of glory.

History recorded that Sussex came out on top of the pile for the third time in five attempts under Adams’ leadership, fuelled by Mushtaq Ahmed’s prolific leg-spin. And making it four in six will require a similarly sustained scrap.

“I expect it is going to be another tight year,” Adams said.

“If you ask me whether one, two or three sides will run away with it, I don’t think so.

“I think it will be another year of being competitive and everybody beating everybody else - the level has got much closer between the teams.

“Surrey impressed me with their end-of-season form last year and I am keen to see how they front up.

“Lancashire are always strong, Hampshire are always strong, Kent are always strong.

“Somerset are making a lot of noise, telling us how good they are, so I will be keen to look at how good they actually are - they’re making a few declarations.

Lancashire's Andrew Flintoff is ready to go for the season

“But for me it is not about August or September, it is about the next month.

“We play four Championship games in a month and that is a quarter of the season.

“If you’re not on the money, ready, prepared properly and playing good cricket now you can find yourself with a lot to do.

“I know Surrey found that last year and perhaps rued the start they had.”

Thirty-seven-year-old Adams’ own time in international cricket was relatively brief and some time ago now but he believes the two-tier system has been successful in creating a tough finishing school for potential England players.

Every side lost at least twice last summer and none were successful in even half of their 16 matches.

“We have a powerful product in domestic cricket,” Adams added.

"In terms of the step up to international cricket people tell me it is not too far away now and we have to thank the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne and the international players like Freddie (Andrew Flintoff) coming back for that.

“It has become quite an intense environment and mirrors somewhat what you expect in international cricket.”

England all-rounder Flintoff, lean and pain-free on his county’s pre-season trip to the United Arab Emirates, plays at first-class level for the first time since last August’s Roses rout at Headingley Carnegie for Lancashire away at Surrey.

Last year’s corresponding fixture was the thrilling season finale when the visitors lost by just 24 runs, needing victory to steal Sussex’s crown, despite being set 489.

Flintoff, 30, hopes to prove form and fitness in the month before the opening npower Test against New Zealand while others among his international colleagues have points to prove.

Durham could reap the benefit of Steve Harmison’s presence, as they did for the first half of last season. It is clear that he has work to do to return to the Test scene while early-season wickets for another discarded bowler Matthew Hoggard will benefit Yorkshire and his own chances of featuring at Lord’s on May 15.

Liam Plunkett will boost Durham

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Having finished as runners-up in 2007, Durham will have to cover the loss of retired fast bowler Ottis Gibson, the Championship’s player of the year, but in Harmison, Liam Plunkett and Graham Onions they have vast pace potential.

With Michael Di Venuto committed as a Kolpak via his Italian passport, on the back of being named in the Pura Cup team of the year for close to 1000 runs in 10 appearances, and Neil McKenzie deputising for Shivnarine Chanderpaul, there is also an international class to the batting.

It is hard to see how Hampshire will cover the loss of Shane Warne both as a leader and leading bowler with Shaun Udal’s exit leaving them particularly thin in spin.

With Kent and last season’s Division Two champions Somerset also well-stocked with experience, exactly which teams might struggle in the new format of 96 overs and three two-hour sessions a la Test match regulations remains unclear.

The game has certainly moved on since Sussex’s inaugural victory in 2003, for the better according to Adams.

“Less and less are we relying on one-dimensional cricketers such as seam bowlers who just bowl seam, don’t bat and have to have a place found for them in the field,” he said.

“The way our side is structured now means we have a lot of guys who bat, bowl and field to a high standard.

“That is really what the vision has always been for us and that includes 14 players who have all come through our system.

“We are starting to get where we set out to get and starting to produce homegrown talent we hope will go on to play for England.”