County Championship R5 Team of the Week: James Rew catches the eye 

By Dom Harris

The second month of the English cricket season has begun, and whilst the return of Test cricket and the T20 Blast is fast approaching, the County Championship continues to deliver high-quality drama.

The fifth round of the campaign saw England’s Joe Root and Harry Brook return to the Yorkshire fold, though they were unable to inspire their side to a win against Warwickshire, whilst a young man destined for an international future in James Rew led a Somerset fightback over Essex.

Elsewhere, Leicestershire extended their lead at the top of Division Two with another impressive team display and there were two remarkable conclusions to the games at Lord’s and Cardiff.

Once again, we highlight some of the most notable individual performances from the three games in Division One and full complement of fixtures in Division Two.

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Daniel Bell-Drummond (Kent)

It may have ultimately proved in vain but Bell-Drummond’s second highest First-Class score had put his side in the driving seat at the end of day three at Lord’s.

The Kent captain made 223, including 23 fours and three sixes, as the visitors recovered from a first innings deficit of 109 to set Middlesex 365 for victory.

This was his first red-ball hundred since beginning the 2024 campaign with back-to-back tons, having only made a top score of 37 previously this season, sharing a century stand with England’s Zak Crawley and three further partnerships worth more than 50.

Marcus Harris (Lancashire)

Australian top-order batter Harris has proven to be an excellent signing for Lancashire so far, yet the promotion favourites once again found themselves under pressure to secure a fourth consecutive draw.

Harris struck his highest score of the season with 167, including a fourth-wicket partnership worth 212 with Matty Hurst, as Lancashire made 450 after opting to bat first against Gloucestershire.

The 32-year-old’s knock was his second century for the Red Rose, climbing to the top of the Division Two scoring charts with 585 runs at an average of 83.57.

Ollie Price (Gloucestershire)

Staying with the high-scoring draw at Old Trafford, Gloucestershire’s Ollie Price recorded the highest individual score of the week with a career-best unbeaten 253.

The 23-year-old occupied the crease for the entirety of day three, becoming only the third Gloucestershire player to score a double century against their opponents, as Gloucestershire declared on 589-8 with a first innings lead of 139.

Price struck 30 fours and three sixes in his 405-ball innings, including a reverse sweep that cleared the rope to signal his fifth and final bat raise, having earlier reached the 200-landmark alongside his elder brother Tom during a 72-run stand for the seventh wicket.

Graham Clark (Durham)

From one high-scoring draw to another, where the batters also dominated between Hampshire and Durham down at Southampton.

Despite finding themselves 82-4 on day one, Durham batter Clark took advantage of favourable conditions to score his first century since 2023 as the visitors racked up a first innings total of 511.

Clark, who offered very little by way of opportunities to the bowling side, eventually made a career-best 160 with 20 boundaries and was facilitated by century stands with Ollie Robinson and George Drissell.

Ben Brown (Hampshire)

New Hampshire captain Brown also scored his first century of the season to help steer his side away from potential trouble on day three against Durham.

The hosts found themselves 259-6, still 252 runs behind on first innings, before Brown and Felix Organ reassured any doubts with a 164-run partnership to all but confirm the game would end in a draw.

Brown’s textbook knock of 162 was his 26th First-Class century, falling just three runs short of equalling his best score of 165 not out from last year.

James Rew (Somerset)

Wicketkeeper Rew scored a crucial hundred as Somerset edged out Essex at Taunton to secure an unlikely first win of the campaign.

Having been set a testing 321 on a pitch offering assistance to seam and spin throughout, Rew helped recover the hosts from 78-5 to the brink of victory.

It was the 21-year-old’s 10th First-Class century already, reaching 116 off 189 balls before falling LBW just nine runs short of the target.

Rew’s mature innings contained 18 boundaries, also having to see off the second new ball from Sam Cook and Jamie Porter, alongside Craig Overton in a match-defining seventh-wicket partnership worth 133 runs.

Ed Barnard (Warwickshire)

The ever-reliable Barnard was in the runs and wickets as Warwickshire maintained their unbeaten start to the season with a professional performance against a Yorkshire side who for the first time this year had England duo Joe Root and Harry Brook available.

The all-rounder took three wickets apiece in both innings, including the big wickets of Root for 1 on the first morning and later the dangerous Jonny Bairstow, ending with match figures of 6-105.

With the bat, Barnard made 41 in the first innings to help guide his side from 47-4 into a first innings lead, before a swift 39-ball 37 calmed any nerves on day three as they completed a chase of 185 with five wickets in hand.

Ben Kellaway (Glamorgan)

A sublime individual effort from all-rounder Kellaway on the final day almost earned Glamorgan a first victory of the season in a thrilling contest with Derbyshire in which both teams were forced to settle for a draw.

Starting day four with a lead of 213, Kellaway was solid as the hosts adopted a safety-first approach, before aggressively moving through the gears before lunch on his way to a career-best 74 with eight fours and one six.

To their credit, Derbyshire were fully set on chasing a target of 338 in 65 overs and were well placed at 278-5 with nine overs to go until the spin of Kellaway removed top-scorer Martin Andersson and Zak Chappell in successive deliveries.

Having earlier dismissed Australian Caleb Jewell and Harry Came, Kellaway completed his second career five-wicket haul when he tempted Anuj Dal out of his crease, also ending the day with a career-best with the ball (5-101), though was unable to beat the defences of Luis Reece and Blair Tickner in the final over of the match as the visitors ended on 308-9.

Toby Roland-Jones (Middlesex)

Experienced seamer Roland-Jones took a five-wicket haul for the 33rd time in his First-Class career as Middlesex skittled Kent for 129 on day one at Lord’s.

His figures of 5-33 were just reward for persistent accuracy, adding a further three wickets in the second innings amidst a Kent fightback with the bat for match figures of 8-140.

The 37-year-old also played a critical role with bat in hand, sharing an unbroken stand of 52 for the ninth-wicket with Zafer Gohar as Middlesex reached their target of 365 in dramatic fashion with one over remaining.

Ben Sanderson (Northamptonshire)

Northants stalwart Sanderson marked his first game of the 2025 season in fine form, taking nine wickets in the match, albeit in a losing cause at Leicester.

Sanderson and his new-ball partner Harry Conway, who was making his debut for the club as an overseas arrival, claimed 17 of the 20 Leicestershire wickets between them.

Whilst Conway took centre stage in the first innings, 36-year-old Sanderson ran through the Foxes top order in the second innings to keep his side in the contest after a disappointing effort with that bat, taking 6-72 for overall match figures of 9-134.

Ethan Bamber (Warwickshire)

Pace bowler Bamber has made a bright start to life with Warwickshire after making the move from Middlesex ahead of the 2025 season.

He claimed a first five-wicket haul of the campaign on day one at Headingley as Yorkshire were dismissed for 205, with England’s Harry Brook among the victims in his 5-47.

Bamber earned himself a further four wickets in the second innings, this time removing Joe Root for a fine 90 and Jonny Bairstow to complete impressive match figures of 9-107 and help set the visitors up for their second win.

Honourable Mentions

Rishi Patel (Leicestershire) – 105 in the first innings and only player to pass 50 in Leicestershire’s 132-run win over Northamptonshire.

Jordan Cox (Essex) – retired hurt for 103 in the second innings on a testing surface which had put Essex into a strong position over Somerset.

Luke Hollman (Middlesex) – maiden century anchored the Middlesex innings in their successful chase against Kent at Lord’s.

Ben Green (Leicestershire) – useful contributions of 39 and 32 in the lower order, as well as five wickets in the match as Leicestershire cemented their place at the top of Division Two.

Simon Harmer (Essex) – experienced spinner took four wickets in both innings to end with match figures of 8-163 but could not prevent defeat at Taunton.

Harry Conway (Northamptonshire) – Australian quick made an instant impact on his first appearance for Northamptonshire with 5-68 and a further three wickets in the second innings against Leicestershire.

READ MORE: County Championship – James Rew century leads Somerset to win over Essex