County Championship: betting preview, tips & odds for Kent v Essex

Sunday 11am

County Championship cricket returns this week after a break for the T20 Blast, and Essex, who top the Division One standings after ten matches, can make up for a disappointing campaign in the shortest format by beating Kent at Canterbury.

The Eagles have won just two of their South Group matches in the Blast but had previously been in brilliant form in four-day cricket. A five-match winning streak took them to the summit and they also eased to victory when Kent visited Chelmsford in May.

Sir Alastair Cook scored 125 and 90 in that victory and England’s record runscorer has been an integral part in Essex’s title charge after stepping down from international duty at the end of the 2018 summer but he is far from the only man stepping up for the Championship leaders.

Youngster Dan Lawrence has impressed with the bat while Nick Browne, Tom Westley and Ravi Bopara have all chipped in with handy runs.

Simon Harmer is the leading top-flight wicket-taker and Jamie Porter continues to torment opposing batsmen while Peter Siddle’s absence will be negated by Mohammad Amir’s decision to finish his red-ball career at the county.

Unlike Essex, Kent have thrived in the Blast but have been average in the Championship, winning just three matches, and they allowed Warwickshire to post a total of 574-7 declared in their last home fixture in the competition.

Lancashire are firmly in charge of Division Two but face a tough test of their promotion credentials when they take on Glamorgan in Wales and bookmakers rate the Red Rose the likely winners as they bid to put distance between themselves and the chasing pack.

Recommendation
Essex
2pts 4-6 general

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