Even without Surrey – who supply so many of England’s players these days – in action, there were still plenty of high-calibre cricketers on show in the County Championship this week.
Perhaps most notably, at Yorkshire, a team stuffed with 788 international caps lost to a Warwickshire side with just 10 Test, ODI and T20I appearances across two players. England have named their Test squad to face Zimbabwe, but with India following soon after and an Ashes tour coming up this winter, there are still plenty of points to prove.
Here’s how those in contention for a Test spot got on.
Joe Root – 1 & 90
Playing his first game of the season for Yorkshire, England’s leading Test run-scorer only managed one off 17 in the first innings. He contributed the highest score of the game in the second innings but it wasn’t enough to prevent defeat.
Enjoy four minutes of Joe Root hitting fours on his way to score 90 from 131 balls pic.twitter.com/JVgR6Icuy9
— Rothesay County Championship (@CountyChamp) May 4, 2025
Harry Brook – 33 & 20
Two starts but no more for Brook in his first game since being named England white-ball captain.
Jonny Bairstow – 47 & 6
Bairstow top-scored in a sub-par Yorkshire batting effort in the first innings but was part of a slide from 143-3 in the second. As captain, despite a record win against Worcestershire, his side now sits in the relegation zone.
Sam Cook – 2-31 & 1-55
Cook celebrated his maiden England Test call-up with two miserly spells, but was unable to find the incision needed to prevent a tight Somerset victory on an absurdly green pitch.
Jordan Cox – 26 & 103*
After injury prevented a Test debut against New Zealand, bad luck struck again for Cox. Named in the squad to face Zimbabwe, his position as England’s backup batter is now in doubt after he retired hurt with a suspected side strain shortly after reaching a splendid century.
Every run Jordan Cox scored against Somerset pic.twitter.com/MQROKzqVqe
— Rothesay County Championship (@CountyChamp) May 5, 2025
Tom Banton – 12 & 13
A triple century in Somerset’s opening game remains Banton’s only score above 30 this season.
James Rew – 9 & 116
Somerset’s standout batter this season, Rew’s century was the key performance in marshalling a stunning, come-from-behind win that could yet prove to be a turning point in their campaign.
James Rew becomes the youngest English batter to score 10 first-class hundreds since Denis Compton pic.twitter.com/WR51kGl3kk
— Rothesay County Championship (@CountyChamp) May 5, 2025
Jack Leach – 3-35 & 3-73
‘If it seams, it spins’. A Shane Warne favourite proven true by Leach, whose first-innings effort on a wicket that couldn’t have been prepared less with him in mind kept Essex in check.
Ollie Robinson - 76
Durham’s keeper had failed to build on a maiden England Test call-up as injury cover in New Zealand with a high score of 22 not out in April, but played nicely as his side passed 500.
Matthew Potts – 4-84
In a run-filled game that barely made it into a third innings, Potts was economical and skilful enough to claim four wickets.
Sonny Baker – 0-103 & 0-15
A tough outing for a rising star, going at over five an over in the first innings.
Liam Dawson – 5-158 & 0-18, 25
Bowled a marathon 48-over spell in the first innings, claiming five wickets for his efforts.
Josh Hull – 1-48 & 3-16
Though only bowling 16 overs in the game, Hull’s six-over burst in Northamptonshire’s chase served as a reminder of what England saw in him to make him one of the most inexperienced Test debutants in their modern history. With the unique angle provided by his height and his left arm, he clean bowled three of the top four, setting Leicestershire on the victory path.
Rehan Ahmed – 0 & 9, 1-1
No.3 suits Rehan less than opening, it would seem. After a century against Lancashire, he has managed 13 runs in four innings since shifting down to first drop to accommodate a fit-again Rishi Patel. He continues to be barely used in the game, bowling just seven balls – though those did include the wicket that sealed victory.
Zak Crawley – 6 & 68
A similar story for Crawley, who bounced back from a first-innings failure with an important second-innings fifty that wasn’t quite the resounding score needed to quell doubt about his form for the third game in a row.
