McKay confident of Foxes response

Leicestershire are more than capable of kick-starting their season when they travel to Bristol to take on Gloucestershire in the second round of Specsavers County Championship matches, starting this Friday.

That’s the view of Clint McKay, the Australian seamer who has been the county’s leading wicket-taker in each of the last two seasons. 

It was by any standards a tough first week of the season for the Foxes, who learned they had received a 16-point deduction on the eve of their opening fixture against Nottinghamshire before suffering defeat as international duo James Pattinson and Stuart Broad shone.

McKay believes adversity has made the Foxes even more determined to make 2017 a successful year in the club’s history. 

The character in the squad has already been shown, with the Second XI completing a terrific win at Nottinghamshire yesterday to start their Championship campaign in style.

“To lose as we did to Notts was disappointing, but it wasn’t all bad news,” said McKay, who has taken 116 wickets in 28 first-class appearances for Leicestershire.  

“I think we started well and we were probably ahead of the game at one stage, but we let that slide in the space of 20 overs on the second afternoon when Stuart Broad and James Pattinson built a century partnership. Perhaps Broad rode his luck a bit, but they’re a very strong side and played some fantastic cricket after that. 

“There were positives for us; Ben Raine was 70-odd not out over two innings and picked up six wickets, that’s a great performance from him and it’s what we know he can do, and there were other good signs from young players. 

“Zak Chappell bowled nice and fast and Gavin Griffiths coming in for his first proper game looked a likely type as well. Harry Dearden looks a good prospect, he batted a good period against two bowlers [Broad and Pattinson] who are probably in the top ten in the world, and now he’s got runs for the second team against another international fast bowler in Jake Ball.

“Obviously all of the boys were a bit flat about the deduction, but we knew we couldn’t do anything about it and we had to look forward. The fact is we only had ourselves to blame. We’re the ones who got reported that many times.

“As a group we’re now really looking forward to going down to Bristol and competing hard. A few players have now returned from injury in that second team game and it gives us some serious options.”

Not only did Raine start this season well, he also has form against Gloucestershire. The all-rounder’s first innings unbeaten 33 and match figures of 7-111 helped Leicestershire to win the corresponding fixture on 2016, a hard-fought triumph at the Cheltenham Festival. 

McKay helped to turn the tide by bowling in tandem with Raine on what turned out to be the final morning. The duo claimed five of the six remaining second innings wickets and ensured that Leicestershire were chasing a target of under 200.

Unsurprisingly, the duo have been named in a Leicestershire squad that has been strengthened by the return to fitness of all-rounder Neil Dexter and seamer Richard Jones. Off-spinner Rob Sayer is also part of the 13-man travelling party to Bristol.

Gloucestershire are without captain Gareth Roderick, who has been suffering with illness in the early part of the season, so Phil Mustard will lead the team as well as keeping wicket.

The home side's 12-man squad includes Oliver Currill, who would be making his Specsavers County Championship debut if given the nod by Head Coach Richard Dawson.

Leicestershire (from): Cosgrove (capt), Ackermann, Chappell, Dearden, Dexter, Eckersley (wk), Griffiths, Horton, Jones, McKay, Pettini, Raine, Sayer.

Gloucestershire (from): Mustard (capt & wk), Dent, Bancroft, Tavare, van Buuren, Hankins, J Taylor, Payne, Miles, Norwell, Liddle, Currill.