Warwickshire County Cricket Club return to four-day cricket and the Rothesay County Championship this week, as they travel to Scarborough to take on Yorkshire.
The Bears have been in fine form through the opening half of the season and sit in third place of a congested Division One table.
With this weeks’ fixture against Yorkshire followed by a trip to Somerset next week, it’s an important two weeks for the side as they bid to continue their title push.
Here’s all you need to know ahead of the clash against the White Rose…
Bears’ form guide (last three)
D-W-D
After a three-week break from red-ball cricket, Warwickshire will be looking to pick up where they left off after recording two wins, three draws and a solitary loss from their opening six fixtures.
Encouragingly for the Bears, in all six games to date, they have entered the final day with an opportunity to win.
Looking at their last three fixtures prior to the break, a draw away against last season’s champions, Nottinghamshire, was followed by a dominant 377-run victory over this week’s opponents at Edgbaston. The following week in the West Midlands, the Bears drew against in-form Glamorgan.
Three in focus
Beau Webster
Beau Webster will be looking to carry his Vitality Blast form into the Rothesay County Championship after enjoying a stellar run in recent weeks. The Australian international stuck his maiden T20 century last weekend in a winning effort against Somerset, just over a week after constructing a blistering 97 at Edgbaston. Webster currently leads the run-scoring charts in the Blast and should be high on confidence as red-ball cricket returns.
Ethan Bamber
After the opening block of County Championship fixtures, Ethan Bamber was the leading wicket taker in Division One. With 29 wickets to his name at an average of 22.27, the right arm opening bowler’s efforts have propelled the Bears into title contention. His tireless work rate is also a huge asset to captain Ed Barnard, with Bamber having bowled 220 overs through six games – more than any other player in the league. Bamber hasn’t played in the T20 team so far this season, so will be raring to go heading into the fixture against Yorkshire.
Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire)
Similarly to Beau Webster, Jonny Bairstow has produced several eye-catching innings’ in the Vitality Blast over the past few weeks. His tally of 250 runs from six games in that format have him as the third highest scorer in the competition so far. Prior to the break, Bairstow was at his best to help Yorkshire to an important victory over title hopefuls Surrey. The former England international struck 120 off 198 balls as the White Rose ran out victors by an innings.
Opposition insight
Yorkshire currently sit eighth in the Division One table with two wins, two losses and two draws from their opening six fixtures. Only 20 points separate Nottinghamshire in first place and Yorkshire in eighth, with any of the top eight sides realistically in with a chance of ending the year as champions.
The White Rose were without a win from their opening three games, but two victories from their last three have seen them alter the course of their season. Last time out, they produced a dominant display against Surrey to win by an innings and 127 runs.
Previous meeting
The teams last met at the start of May, with Warwickshire producing an outstanding four days of cricket to win by a staggering 377-run margin.
In testing conditions on day one, Sam Hain’s 57 proved to be vital, as the Bears were dismissed for 147. Olly Hannon-Dalby, returning to the side, then took four for 38, with Jordan Thompson taking three for 14 as Yorkshire were bowled out for 152.
With five runs separating the sides after the first innings, Hain added to his run-tally with a stunning 164 not out to take the game away from the visitors in the second. Several other players also contributed, with opener Rob Yates adding 81, Dan Mousley 70, Ed Barnard 60 and Zen Malik 57, as the Bears declared on 553 for six.
In their reply, Yorkshire were reduced to 14 for three inside the first nine overs and couldn’t recover. Bamber took four for 50, with Hannon-Dalby making it seven for the match by taking three for 33 as the White Rose were dismissed for 171.