Week six of the Rothesay County Championship has restored the table to parity, with every side having played five games – meaning we are already over a third of the way through the red ball season. In Division One, there was a huge win for the seemingly unstoppable Nottinghamshire who move 12 points clear at the summit, while Sussex claimed victory to move into third place. Yorkshire’s draw with Essex means that Somerset sink into the relegation zone.
In the second division, Glamorgan recorded their first win of the season with an innings victory away at Kent. Elsewhere, Northamptonshire recovered from some precarious positions to beat Lancashire – with the Red Rose currently holding the wooden spoon in Division Two.
1. Adam Lyth – Yorkshire (58 & 185) (0-5)
Adam Lyth’s first innings 58 was a key factor in Yorkshire reaching 216 by the time Essex bowled them out towards the end of day one. On a difficult wicket at Chelmsford, only eight of the 22 batsmen from either side had reached double figures after one innings each.
The opener would return on day two after Essex collapsed for 123 – and would quickly pile the pressure on the home side. With half-centuries from James Wharton and Jonny Bairstow aiding the cause, Lyth put on 185 runs from 287 balls, spending just shy of seven hours at the crease. It was Lyth’s second century of the season, both coming in the second innings away from home. The visitors would post a spectacular target of 520 for the Chelmsford outfit to chase.
2. Jake Libby – Worcestershire (13 & 167)
Jake Libby will be wishing he can play at Hove every week. His career-best score of 215 was scored on the ground in 2022, with the opener returning in 2023 to score 198. He would reproduce this form in 2025, but it was a solo effort that fell short of a remarkable victory.
Worcestershire starred down the barrel at a staggering chase of 361, thanks in part to a 104-run first innings deficit. Libby saw opening partner Gareth Roderick depart after just 5.3 overs and may have been fearing the worst given Worcestershire’s shameful batting collapses this season. Libby would stand tall, scoring 167 of the 361 required runs, but would be dismissed as the eighth man to fall with the Pears still 75 runs short of their target.
3. Tom Latham – Warwickshire (184)
Warwickshire’s marquee overseas signing joined up with the Bears squad for the first time this season as New Zealand opener Tom Latham made his debut. With the settled partnership of Rob Yates and Alex Davies at the top of the order, Latham slotted in at number three in a batting lineup full of international quality.
That quality would immediately shine through as Latham ticked along to post 184, departing with the score 450-5. The knock allowed the middle order to play without pressure, leading to Ed Barnard recording a career-best 177 not out, while Zen Malik scored a maiden First Class ton with an unbeaten 105. Despite sitting second in the Division One table, Latham’s innings satisfies Warwickshire’s need for top order runs, having averaged just 242.5 runs per innings as a side before this week’s clash with Surrey.
4. Marcus Harris – Lancashire (121 & 43)
Just five games into the season, Marcus Harris is already a strong favourite to be regarded as the best overseas signing of 2025. The Australia opener has batted at four for Lancashire, scoring a mammoth 749 runs from 10 innings, averaging 83.2 in the process, giving himself a shot at reaching the 1,000-run mark before the end of May. Not only has he held together Lancashire’s batting lineup, but he has thrown himself back into the picture for a Test recall.
Harris scored his third century of the season at Wantage Road giving his side a rare lead of 38 runs at the halfway point of the match. Keaton Jennings (41) and Matty Hurst (59) were the only two Lancashire batsmen to score above 13 runs as the Aussie piled on 121. Chasing 236 in the fourth innings, Harris top scored with 43, but after his 83-run stand with Josh Bohannon was broken, the lower order again collapsed to fall to a 70-run defeat. Harris will now take on the responsibility of interim club captain following Jennings stepping down from the role on Tuesday afternoon.
5. Ben Foakes (WK) – Surrey (174*) (2 catches)
After Warwickshire’s assault with the bat on a flat wicket at Edgbaston, Surrey were faltering 346-9, still 319 runs behind their hosts. In partnership with Matthew Fisher – who scored 40 runs from 145 balls himself – Ben Foakes was able to steer Surrey to 504 all out. Still 161 runs behind the eight ball, the reigning champions were forced to follow-on, but Foakes’ knock had delayed the inevitable until the afternoon session of day four, forcing the draw. 174 not out marks a new career high score for Foakes, beating his 149 that was posted against Hampshire in 2016.
Surrey have a uniquely unsettled batting lineup in a different way to most counties. Ollie Pope’s international commitments saw Ryan Patel move back to number three, while short-term overseas signing Kurtis Patterson was left on the sidelines. Surprisingly, Jason Roy was given a first red ball outing in five years, replacing Jamie Smith. Foakes’ presence in the middle order will give Surrey much needed stability as they prepare to chase down early pace-setters Nottinghamshire.
6. Ben Kellaway – Glamorgan (181*) (0-2 & 2-18)
For the second week in a row, Ben Kellaway makes this side, but it was his batting efforts that was the talking point this week. Kellaway struck his maiden professional century with an unbeaten 181, posting the impressive total in just 228 balls. Glamorgan batters got in and got out before going big at Canterbury, with Jersey-born Asa Tribe falling an agonising six runs short of a maiden ton, but Kellaway’s knock ensured the visitors had a chokehold on the game from close on day one.
The efforts of the 21-year-old all-rounder meant that Glamorgan not only recorded an impressive innings victory at Canterbury but also took four of the five batting bonus points on offer. Combined with bowling the hosts out inside 75 overs, the men from Cardiff took a 23-point haul back along the M4.
7. George Hill – Yorkshire (0 & 4) (6-51 & 3-31)
Yorkshire’s George Hill is a genuine candidate to feature in future England Test squads. Since making his First Class debut in 2020, the 24-year-old has scored over 2,500 runs at an average of 31.8, as well as taking 96 wickets at 23.4. He was a standout performer with the ball at Chelmsford, taking career best match figures of 9-82 across both innings.
At the end of day one, Hill got the prized wicket of Dean Elgar before quickly dismissing nightwatchman Jamie Porter, leaving Essex 27-3 overnight. Hill would return to see off Robin Das, before blowing away the tail with three wickets in 17 deliveries. After dismissing captain Tom Westley in the second innings, Hill grabbed the crucial wickets of Matt Critchley and Michael Pepper – who had both faced over 200 balls- to set up a thrilling final hour that saw Essex hold on for a draw with one wicket remaining.
8. Jack Carson – Sussex (102 & 39*) (0-5 & 0-31)
In the current climate of English spin, Jack Carson’s name has been mentioned on a handful of occasions when discussing who Ben Stokes and Brendan McCullum should invest their time in. The off-spinner has taken just six wickets this season, although he does ply his trade on a Hove wicket that tends to favour seam bowling.
Carson’s 11 First Class 50’s prove that he has always been handy with the bat, but the Northern Irishman notched his maiden century this week with a crucial 102 against Worcestershire. Coming to the crease after Tom Taylor ripped through the Sussex top order, Carson partnered Fynn Hudson-Prentice on 88-6, before taking control of the game and steering Sussex to a respectable 284. His innings ended with a strike rate just shy of 74, wasting no time to drag Sussex out of a potentially match-defining rut.
9. Ben Sanderson – Northamptonshire (19 & 65) (1-49 & 1-40)
At number nine, Ben Sanderson gets his second feature in as many weeks. After his nine-wicket heroics last week, he sneaks in towards the bottom of the order due to his tail-end – and possibly game winning – batting efforts against Lancashire.
Northamptonshire’s top order was quickly dealt with by Lancashire, collapsing to 67-6 in the first innings and 107-5 in the second. Sanderson came to the crease on day two with his side 189-7, only 151 runs ahead in a tight affair. Discontent with the position of the game, the pace bowler unleashed a devastating attack on the Red Rose bowlers, striking 65 from a mere 28 deliveries. His innings moved the game into a neutral state, setting a target of 236 for the visitors to chase, before the quarter of Sanderson, Liam Guthrie, Harry Conway and Calvin Harrison provided Northants with their first win of the 2025 campaign.
10. Kyle Abbott – Hampshire (67 & 18*) (5-57 & 3-62)
Hampshire’s performance at Trent Bridge was certainly one to forget for the county. Nottinghamshire scored 678 runs in the match with Freddie McCann, Jack Haynes and Liam Patterson-White all reaching three figures (and all being unfortunate to miss out on this side). In response, Hampshire could only muster 196 and 116 in their respective innings, falling to a 366-run defeat.
Kyle Abbott’s individual efforts bucked the trend of his teammates sub-par performance. Abbott took a staggering 43rd career fifer in the first innings as he gutted Nottinghamshire’s middle order, before dismissing both openers on his way to a three-wicket haul in the second innings. The South African top scored with 67 during Hampshire’s first innings after coming to the crease at 106-7, while he was left stranded at the end of the game as the hosts wrapped up the win at the end of day three.
11. Tom Taylor – Worcestershire (32 & 10*) (5-56 & 2-37)
Another player involved in a losing effort, Tom Taylor’s first innings bowling spell will be up there with the best of the season come September. After finding no success with the new ball, Taylor and partner Ben Allison were rested and reintroduced with Sussex forming another solid opening partnership.
With the score 80-0, Taylor grabbed the wicket of Daniel Hughes before dismissing Tom Clark and Tom Alsop for three and eight ball ducks respectively, as Allison found the edge of James Coles leaving the hosts 81-4 at lunch. After the break, Taylor completed his five-wicket haul with the important wickets of John Simpson and Tom Haines, finishing his rout with Sussex 88-6.