Foxes excited by red ball return

Head Coach Paul Nixon is delighted to welcome back three seam bowlers to the red ball fray ahead of tomorrow’s Specsavers County Championship game at Northants.

Pakistan international Muhammad Abbas returns from test duty while Zak Chappell and Richard Jones, who bowled well against Durham in the Royal London One-Day Cup victory yesterday, are also back in a 13-man squad after injury.

The 21-year-old Chappell returned List A career best figures of 3 for 45 against Durham yesterday, including a second spell of 3 for 10 off five overs.

Chappell has been unfortunate with injuries this term but is feeling in good shape ahead of the trip to Wantage Road.

He said: “It’s been great to get back out on the park and my rhythm is there again. It was nice to try and get some wickets up front, unfortunately I didn’t get any but Rainey [Ben Raine] and I bowled well and that catch he took was different league. We got our rewards later on in the day.

“I’m very excited to be back in the squad for Northants in the [Specsavers] County Championship. Hopefully we can take our momentum from the Durham win and use it to get a positive result.

“It’s amazing to have Mo [Muhammad Abbas] back, he is a high-class performer and hopefully I will bowl in tandem with him and be successful.

“The boys are raring to go, and I know that Gav [Griffiths] is also champing at the bit to continue his success in the red ball format.”

Nixon added: “Varun Aaron did a great job for us, and bowled a spell against Glamorgan that helped to turn that game on its head, but the return of Mo is brilliant, the more so because our [Specsavers County] Championship form has been encouraging this season.

“If we'd got over the line up at Durham, as we should have done, we'd have been in a really good position. But as it is we won our last game, and we've taken 20 wickets twice – something we didn't do all last season.

“We also welcome the official man of the recent Test series back into the side in Mo [Abbas], and Zak [Chappell] and Jonesy [Richard Jones] have also bowled nicely recently, so there's a lot to be optimistic about.

“Everybody saw what a good bowler Mo is, despite being relatively young in terms of the amount of cricket he's played. He moves the ball both ways, he's very accurate and presents the seam so well.”

The Head Coach is wary of the threat posed by Northamptonshire but is backing his charges to immediately get back into the red ball processes that have stood them in good stead so far this campaign.

Nixon will be without a number of players due to injury, including Ned Eckersley (finger) and Dieter Klein (side).

But key batsman Mark Cosgrove is fit again after a back niggle and the Foxes also welcome back Neil Dexter, Gavin Griffiths and Callum Parkinson, who were rested yesterday, alongside Abbas, Chappell and Jones.

“We know that Northants possess a dangerous batting side, and many of them are clean hitters of the ball, but that can always go one way or the other,” said Nixon.

“We’ll need to be disciplined and I know that our bowlers, who have been outstanding in the [Specsavers County] Championship, will slot straight back into red ball cricket. Northants did really well in this format last season, and also have a skilful pace attack, so we know we’ll be in for a competitive contest.

“Our batting has been very consistent this season with big first innings scores posted in the first three games, and a good response in the second innings against Glamorgan. We’ve had contributions throughout the order and we’ll need that to continue.

“However, we’ve passed 50 on numerous occasions in the [Specsavers County] Championship but only had one century. That was a huge score by Ackers [Colin Ackermann] against Sussex, so we’ll be looking for more hundreds in the coming weeks.”

Leicestershire CCC (from 13): Horton (capt), Abbas, Ackermann, Chappell, Cosgrove, Dearden, Dexter, Javid, Jones, Hill (wk), Parkinson, Raine, Griffiths.

* Leicestershire CCC's next Specsavers County Championship home game is against Middlesex starting on Wednesday, June 20. Tickets are available for all four days online HERE