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Lancashire will be hosting their longstanding rivals Yorkshire in the next round Group 3 fixture of the ongoing County Championship season at the Old Trafford ground in Manchester from May 27.
Yorkshire are currently on top of the Group 3 standings with 98 points from their six matches, including three wins and three draws. Lancashire are positioned second with 93 points from their five games, including three wins and two draws.
The two yet undefeated table-toppers will be eyeing a victory in the much-anticipated clash in Manchester. A win for Yorkshire will nearly seal their place at the top of the points table and potentially secure them one of the two Group 3 spots in the next stage of the competition.
A victory for Lancashire could also see them through. It would at least ensure they maintain a significant distance with other sides in their six-team group, also featuring Glamorgan, Northamptonshire, Sussex and Kent.
Key Players
Dane Vilas has been very good for Lancashire with the bat in the Championship so far. The former South African cricketer has made 317 runs, including a highest of 189, at an average of 52.83. Vilas’ good recent form makes him one of Lancashire’s strong pillars. He now boasts of a very impressive first-class record to his name with 9,436 runs from 166 matches at an average of 42.31, including 22 hundreds and 43 half-centuries. Vilas will be eyeing another big score for the season against Yorkshire.
Josh Bohannon has been the other of Lancashire’s most consistent performer with the bat in the County Championship 2021. Bohannon has made 323 from his seven innings in the competition so far at an average of 46.14. The right-hand batsman has made three half-centuries in the tournament but hasn’t yet got a big individual score on the board. He will be looking to rectify that when he faces up against the Yorkshire attack. In what is still a relatively young first-class career, the 24-year-old Bohannon has now made 1,307 runs in 26 matches at an average of 42.16.
Matt Parkinson is currently the highest wicket-taker for Lancashire in the competition. The 24-year-old leg-spinner has taken 19 wickets from seven innings at an average of only 19.21 and an economy rate of just 2.54, with best figures of 7/126 in an innings. Parkinson has given Lancashire an edge in terms of their bowling and he will be looking to continue his good work against Yorkshire. The young leg-spinner has played 24 first-class matches with 81 wickets to his name at an average of 23.81.
Adam Lyth has been Yorkshire’s stand-out batsman in the County Championship season so far. The left-hand batsman is comfortably standing on the top of the run-charts for his team. Lyth has made 538 runs from his 10 innings in the competition at an average of 59.77, including two hundreds and three half-centuries. Lyth, who has fallen out of favours with the national selectors, has batted really well for Yorkshire in tough conditions this season. Lyth will be hoping to continue his rich vein of form in the battle of the two roses and make sure his team comes out triumphant at the end.
Steven Patterson is Yorkshire’s top wicket-taker of the Championship so far. Patterson has scalped 21 wickets at an average of just 19.71 while going for only 2.31 runs per over. The 37-year-old right-arm seamer has brought all his experience into play for Yorkshire. He has now played 165 first-class matches with 441 wickets at an average of 27.35. Patterson would want to keep a wood over opposition batsmen and help Yorkshire strengthen their case for entry into the next stage of the County Championship 2021.
Jordan Thompson is second on the wicket-taking charts for Yorkshire, with 17 scalps from five matches at an average of 21.58 and an economy rate of 2.78. The young all-rounder boasts of a very impressive record in his early days at the first-class level. He has taken 37 wickets at only 19.40 per piece from 12 matches and is averaging 25.75 with the bat. Thompson’s all-round prowess gives Yorkshire an edge over the opposition heading into the Lancashire face-off.
Prediction
The Lancashire-Yorkshire encounter has always been a much-anticipated one for the fans of the County Championship. And this time, there is an added context of it being a clash between the two in-form table-toppers in Group 3.
Hardly much has separated them in terms of performance so far, and thus it isn’t easy to pick one over the other. But Yorkshire are certainly carrying greater momentum behind them, positioned at the top of the standings, and could prevail over their arch-rivals.
