Summer is upon us and with it comes the start of some mouthwatering cricket fixtures. One competition that is hotting up and catching the eye of many experts is the County Championship Division One title race, where a number of sides are vying for top spot.
With a whole host of fixtures on the horizon and the championship far from sewn up, here are a few sides vying for the County Championship Division One crown, with a look at some of the best odds from various bookmakers.
Surrey
The might of Surrey is hard to ignore when considering the title contenders, mainly because of their consistent form at the top of the table over the years. Surrey have been a revelation with the bat so far this season, despite losing the influential figure of Kumar Sangakkara after he announced his retirement last year. There is a suggestion that Surrey are the team to beat this summer, summed up by their bookies’ favourite tag at 3/1 (888Sport). Rory Burns, the new captain of Surrey, has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders but the Englishman and his team are a dangerous proposition.
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire have started the season incredibly well, despite the fact many probably weren’t expecting them to lead at this early stage of the new campaign. After losing their top-three order batsmen, Notts’ season was predicted to be a tough one. New additions Ross Taylor and Chris Nash have helped assuage any fears of struggle however. With odds of 7/2 (BetVictor) to retain top spot and bring home the prize, Nottinghamshire certainly represent good value. Indeed, it’s perhaps worth checking out these UK betting offers to back them.
Essex
County Championship Division One winners by a convincing 78 points, the champions of 2017 are expected to be battling it out at the top once again. Currently sitting in 4th spot with some important fixtures coming up, Anthony McGrath’s men are expected to kick on further now we’re entering an important period of the summer and really hammer home their title credentials. Captained by Ryan ten Doeschate, Essex’s perfect blend of youth and experience mean odds of 11/2 (betway) represent decent value.
Yorkshire
Sitting in 5th place and with a few damaging losses to their name already, Yorkshire’s season is yet to really get going. A number of issues on and off the field have been reported and, mainly due to the fact England take a lot of their best players, expectations aren’t high. Geoffrey Boycott has ridiculed the appointment of a sports psychologist and after their fairly poor start, things need to improve for them. Yorkshire’s Alex Lees and Adam Lyth will be expected to score the runs needed to help fire them back into contention. Priced at 7/1 (BoyleSports), Yorkshire winning the title isn’t completely out of the question.
Somerset
The new-look Somerset, desperate to better their relegation threatened campaign of last year, have started the summer of 2018 extremely well. Sitting in 2nd place and with no losses to their name as of yet, Somerset represent good value at 11/2 (Unibet), especially with the tricky Taunton pitch on their side and a number of crucial match-ups coming up. With three wins in their last four games of 2017, resulting in a great escape from potential relegation, Somerset and their ongoing momentum pose a real threat to table-toppers Surrey this year.
The County Championship Division One race is always hard to predict, especially with the quality on show. One thing is for sure though – we’re in for a great summer of cricket.
