2021 County Championship – Lancashire vs Northamptonshire Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Lancashire vs Northamptonshire taking place? Thursday 15th April, 2021 – 11:00 (UK)
Where is Lancashire vs Northamptonshire taking place? Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester
Where can I get tickets for Lancashire vs Northamptonshire? The County Championship will initially be played without spectators but it is worth checking each county’s official website for updates
What channel is Lancashire vs Northamptonshire on? This match will not be televised live in the UK
Where can I stream Lancashire vs Northamptonshire? Matches can be streamed live on the official websites of the First-Class Counties
THE PREDICTION
Lancashire were left frustrated against Sussex last weekend. An obstinate Aaron Thomason innings, of 46 runs from 189 balls, as well as some indifferent weather prevented Lancs’ from forcing a victory in their opening match of the campaign. An impressive 189 from the consistently impressive captain Dane Vilas as well as half-centuries Alex Davies and Rob Jones complimented a relatively encouraging start for the Red Rose. They will continue to be without James Anderson as the ECB have decided he will rest until April 22 and will be disappointed to learn that Jackson Bird will not join up for his overseas spell due to injury as well as the continued absence of Richard Gleeson. Given that, Lancashire will likely name an unchanged side with only Matt Parkinson coming in for Tom Hartley a potential alteration.
They come up against a Northamptonshire side that earned a draw at home last week against Kent in their opening match of the season. Pre-season concerns that Northants would be too reliant on Ricardo Vasconcelos’ runs were eased by Rob Keogh joining him in an opening match century. However, those two players did manage 278 runs of the team’s total of 434 so there will remain some worries. Ben Sanderson taking 1-113 off 28 overs will also slightly concern the visitors as he tends to be their key threat, particularly early in the season.
Lancashire’s inability to rotate the bowling attack will be a worry but it remains a strong one with Tom Bailey, Saqib Mahmood, Danny Lamb and Luke Wood. Despite Northants managing to collect the maximum batting bonus points last week, they will remain wary of a potential lack of runs. Given that, the home team will expect to get their first win of the season in this one.
