2021 County Championship – Worcestershire vs Essex Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Worcestershire vs Essex taking place? Thursday 29th April, 2021 – 11:00 (UK)
Where is Worcestershire vs Essex taking place? New Road, Worcester
What is the expected weather for Worcestershire vs Essex? A slight chance of rain on Days 2 and 3, but expected to be largely dry with sunny intervals on all four days with temperatures reaching highs of 13c on Day 4
Where can I get tickets for Worcestershire vs Essex? The County Championship will initially be played without spectators but it is worth checking each county’s official website for updates
What channel is Worcestershire vs Essex on? This match will not be televised live in the UK
Where can I stream Worcestershire vs Essex? Matches can be streamed live on the official websites and YouTube channels of the First-Class Counties alongside the England Cricket App.
THE PREDICTION
Worcestershire continued their winless run to the start of the season with a predictable draw at home to Nottinghamshire last week. They remain unbeaten due to some handy batting performances; they have surpassed 300 in each of their first innings totals, twice going past 400. Their draw with Notts will frustrate the home team as they managed to enforce the follow-on but a fairly toothless 109 overs saw their opponents reach 236 without loss. The performance of Jacob Libby will please Worcester as he has hit two centuries so far this season.
Essex have begun the campaign in an underwhelming way as they look to make it a fourth first-class title in five years. Their seven-wicket loss against Warwickshire will be particularly frustrating as the Bears chased down a target of 256 on the fourth day in just 80.4 overs; a rare wicket-less innings for Simon Harmer. The week prior to that they managed to defeat Durham after suffering a first-innings deficit of 163 runs - a result and performance that was the very epitome of perennial challengers or champions.
Despite a lack of consistency so far this season, Essex will expect to find that in the coming weeks and top-order runs from Nick Browne and Alastair Cook have been thin. However, given Worcestershire’s second-innings bowling performance last week, they might be able to cash-in this week so an away victory would be a good bet.
