Five young cricketers to keep an eye on during the new County Cricket season

With warm-up fixtures for the return of the County Championship just over a month away, it is time to look at a few youngsters who could be looking to make their mark on the national scene once more.

Tom Lammonby (Somerset)

Since the retirement of the great Alistair Cook, English cricket has been calling out for a stylish left-hander who could open the batting. They have tried Rory Burns and we are going to see Alex Lees get a long-overdue chance in the Caribbean in March, but if Lees struggles, do not be shocked to hear the name Tom Lammonby being whispered by fans up and down the country.

At the tender age of 21, the Exeter-born cricketer has already spent the best part of the last two seasons at the top of the Somerset batting line-up, registering four centuries, including one under Cook’s very nose in the Bob Willis Trophy Final on the famous Lords turf in 2020.

Lammonby struggled to capture his best form last season, only making 663 runs across all formats of the game but did travel out to Australia for the Big Bash with Hobart Hurricanes.

Despite his game time being limited by overseas player restrictions, the left-hander will have gained precious knowledge from picking the brains of teammates and opposition alike during his time in Australia and he returns to Taunton with a point to prove and you would not bet against him doing just that.

Harry Brook (Yorkshire)

Probably the most well-known name on this list, Brook is the only man out of this five to have appeared for his country before, taking part in one of the T20 internationals against the West Indies this past January.

With over 2,000 runs to his name in first-class cricket alone, it is little surprise that he is already being touted as a future England player by many, including England star Ben Stokes after a dazzling two years in 2020 and 2021.

Already capturing attention overseas, the former England under-19s captain has spent the past winter in the Big Bash with the Hurricanes as they battled through to the Eliminator, picking up 44 runs from his handful of appearances as he struggled to deal with the mystery spin threat posed by the likes of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

Back on home shores, Brook will be looking to back up a fantastic 2021 season which saw him register an astonishing 1,472 runs across the year.

Whilst Brook is clearly far from the finished article and needs to work on his game against the turning ball, do not be surprised to see the Yorkshireman’s name crop up in an England squad or two over the course of the next 12 months.

Saif Zaib (Northamptonshire)

A relative unknown at the start of last season, Zaib capitalised on his opportunities at the County Ground, solidifying himself as an indispensable part of the Northamptonshire middle order in all forms of the game last summer.

A left-handed batsman who also offers a slow left-arm option with the ball, the 23-year-old registered his maiden century last summer, hitting 135 against Sussex whilst compiling 842 runs in all formats. He also picked up career-best figures of 3/37 against Leicestershire in the One Day Cup while pulling off some miracle catches in the Vitality Blast.

With Northants due to compete in Division One this season as the County Championship returns to its original format, Zaib will have a big part to play if they are to have any chance at survival.

Matty Potts (Durham)

Sunderland native Potts may be best known for his exploits in white-ball cricket to date, returning to the Durham side for last season’s One Day Cup Final against Glamorgan and taking 3/55. He showed towards the back end of last season that he can more than hold his own in four-day contests as well.

In the penultimate fixture of the 2021 season, Potts picked up a second career eight-wicket haul against Northamptonshire as Durham narrowly failed to secure a thrilling victory.

He was also part of a record-breaking ninth-wicket partnership with Liam Trevaskis as he hit 81 runs in a stand of 149 which looked destined to lead the side from the North East to victory until rain washed out all play on the third day.

Potts’ huge potential was shown by his selection to play for the Northern Superchargers in the maiden season of The Hundred, picking up three wickets and keeping runs to a minimum as he gained invaluable experience bowling to a star-studded list of international batsmen across the tournament.

Henry Brookes (Warwickshire)

For a long time, England have been calling out for bowlers who can hit 90mph on a regular basis. While the likes of Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Saqib Mahmood are household names amongst cricket lovers, Warwickshire have so far kept Henry Brookes reasonably under the radar.

After missing a large chunk of last season with a torn quadriceps which required surgery, Brookes returned to first-team training in December and was immediately described as being ‘like a new signing’ by coach Mark Robinson.

Brookes debuted for the Midlands side in 2017, taking on Essex in a Championship fixture which saw him going up against the likes of Ravi Bopara, Ryan ten Doeschate and England batsman Dan Lawrence. He went wicketless in the match but has bounced back to take 55 wickets in 19 matches since.

Another reason for England fans to potentially be excited about Brookes is that he is constantly improving with the willow as well, boasting a career-best of 84 while typically batting no higher than number eight or nine in the order.

With the ability to swing both the new and old ball, Brookes is certainly one to watch out for as he continues his return to his best in Division One.

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