Northamptonshire return to Rothesay County Championship action tomorrow when they welcome Gloucestershire to the cinch County Ground.
After a stunning first half of the Vitality Blast which saw the Steelbacks win six out of six, Darren Lehmann’s side will be looking to continue that momentum into red ball cricket.
Northamptonshire currently sit second in the Division Two table, having won two, drawn three and lost one in the opening six games. Their 85 points leaves them 20 points behind leaders Durham, but only 14 ahead of 7th placed Worcestershire in what has become a very tight table.
Although the visitors have started the Blast brilliantly, their red ball form tells a very different story. Gloucestershire have won one and lost five, and sit bottom on 32 points. Although they have produced better performances than results suggest, they will be looking to reignite their County Championship season tomorrow.
The return fixture in Bristol last month was a tense one for all spectators. Louis Kimber, who came in as a concussion sub, smashed a brilliant half century to help Northamptonshire to victory on the final day. In what as a low-scoring affair, Northamptonshire’s resilience with the bat in testing conditions proved to be the difference.
Australian Gabe Bell has finished his spell with the Club and to replace the seamer, Gloucestershire have welcomed New Zealand international Kristian Clarke on a two-game deal. The seamer has been a threat for Northern Districts back home and will provide a tough test for Northamptonshire’s batters.
Match information:
Play is scheduled to get underway at 11am with lunch at 1pm and tea scheduled for 3:40pm. There are 96 overs scheduled for each day and all four days of the fixture will be live streamed on the Steelbacks TV YouTube channel.
The Long Room will be open for members. The Mushtaq Bar is open with full bar and snacks available. Nuts For Your Coffee will be located by the groundsman’s hut, serving hot and cold drinks and food.
On Day 1, Northamptonshire will be inducting two new members into the Hall of Fame. For anyone wanting to attend, the presentation will take place at 10:30am in the Long Room and then the plaques will be placed into the Hall of Fame ready for spectators to see at lunch.
Day 1 is also our Former Players Day. Players from our 1976 winning Gillette Cup side will be welcomed onto the outfield at the lunch interval with it being the 50th anniversary of Northamptonshire winning the trophy.
Squad news:
Harry Conway is available after it was announced that he would be staying with the Club for two more County Championship games. After missing the Tuesday night game against Worcestershire with a toe problem, Lewis McManus is back in the squad and could return behind the stumps.
Although the Club have been managing a back issue, Justin Broad could be in contention for his first County Championship appearance of the season. Louis Kimber remains sidelined with a hamstring problem and Ben Sanderson is rested for the fixture having been an ever-present for Northamptonshire so far.
Northamptonshire squad to face Gloucestershire:
Luke Procter (c), George Bartlett, Justin Broad, Harry Conway, Liam Guthrie, Calvin Harrison, Lewis McManus, Gus Miller, Nathan McSweeney, James Sales, George Scrimshaw, Ricardo Vasconcelos, Raphy Weatherall, Saif Zaib.
We spoke to Lead Batting Coach Greg Smith about the form in the Blast, winning in different ways and adapting between formats.
GLOUCESTERSHIRE
Previewed by Richard Latham, ECB Reporters Network, supported by Rothesay
Captain: Cameron Bancroft
Head Coach: Mark Alleyne
2025 finish: 6th
2025 highest run-scorer: James Bracey (1,010)
2025 highest wickeThe recruitment of Will Williams from Lancashire and the return of Craig Miles from Warwickshire will further strengthen a seam attack depleted by the moves of Josh Shaw, Ajeet Singh Dale, Tom Price and Zaman Akhter to Somerset, Lancashire, Sussex and Essex respectively.
What we’re looking forward to seeing: Whether Ben Charlesworth can continue his development into a genuine big-hitting all-rounder. The powerful left-hander looks set to open the batting with skipper Cameron Bancroft after scoring 914 Championship runs at an average of nearly 40 last season. Having made his debut at 17, 25-year-old Charlesworth is now a seasoned first XI player and has been working on his right-arm seam bowling, which brought 16 Championship wickets in 2025.
Aiming to catch the Test selectors’ eye: After suffering a dip in form following two Test appearances against New Zealand in 2021, James Bracey looked back to his best last season, averaging 50.5 in 24 Championship innings. A capable wicketkeeper, Bracey earned a reputation for sound defence in his early Gloucestershire career but has developed his shot-making and was Gloucestershire’s leading six-hitter in four-day cricket during 2025.
Final thought: The appointment of Jon Lewis as director of cricket last October means that, along with head coach Mark Alleyne, Gloucestershire have two of their most experienced former players at the helm. Lewis took 849 first class wickets during his playing career as a seamer and it will be fascinating to see how he can influence a new-look pace attack, which will need to gel quickly if the team are to challenge for promotion.