An indication of the prevailing mood in the Durham dressing room is that you won’t find any of them dismissing the theory that they could become the third newly promoted team to win the county championship this season.
Even the rain that completely washed out their first top-flight match since 2016, Hampshire’s visit to Chester-le-Street, could not dampen it.
Since the creation of two divisions at the beginning of this century, only Nottinghamshire in 2005 and Essex seven years ago have managed to bridge the quality gap with plaudits.
“If you ask anyone who watches cricket, they would say our top 15 represent one of the top four teams in the First Division,” reasons opening batsman Alex Lees.
‘Within this playing group we have a lot of confidence. The style of cricket we play, the cricketers we have produced for England and the England Lions, the quality is clearly there.
Durham opening batsman Alex Lees believes they can challenge at the top of the county championship this season.
As well as Lees, who topped the Division Two scoring charts with 1,347 runs last year, they have three other players in the top six strengthened by the dose of Bazball administered by their Australian coach Ryan Campbell: South African David Bedingham, Ollie Robinson and Graham Clark. – a pair of seamers with Test call-ups eyeing in Matthew Potts and Brydon Carse, plus Ben Stokes to add from May.
Australian Scott Boland, a preferred bowler to Mitchell Starc at the start of the 2023 Ashes, is signed up until the end of July and, should Durham prove genuine spoilsport material in Surrey’s historic quest for three titles, He will be replaced by another high-profile import for the second half of the summer, in the form of coveted South African Gerald Coetzee.
Impressed by last year’s speeches to county coaches Stokes and Brendon McCullum about the type of cricketers they wanted to elevate to international level, as they reminded him of his own playing days under the legendary Rod Marsh, Campbell ordered his equipment that releases the handbrake.
They lost their first match at Sussex 12 months ago but cruised freely by 4.3 runs for the remainder.
“I think in any sport it’s very important to have that vicarious experience to draw on,” Lees continues.
“The way we played last year was ideal to create a good vibe in the club and take advantage of that.
“And regardless of how we start the season, I think we have too much quality not to aim for the top of the table.”
“The type of cricket we play is aggressive and fun and when everything goes well it’s fantastic to play.
Durham believe they can be the third newly promoted team to win the county championship since their inception.
“Obviously we loved it last season, the test for our group will be when it doesn’t go so well, how we keep that mantra and trust in it.
“Obviously when you win and dominate the games it’s fun, but when not everyone is fit and it’s a bit difficult, we’ll stay true to our values and try to play that way all year round.”
The transformation in Lees’ game was there for all to see: a strike rate of 74 represents an eye-catching 50% increase on his career blue-chip mark.
Naturally, scoring so prolifically at such a fast pace over an extended period caught the attention of the selectors, however, when he got the call inviting him to tour India earlier this year, he says returning to the colors from England was not on his radar. .
The 10-cap Test player’s assessment of three 50s in as many matches against the Indian second row – “I played solidly without disgracing myself, I wasn’t exceptional” – reveals much of his maturity. On Sunday he will turn 31 years old.
“When you’re selected for those environments, it’s a sign that you’re on the periphery,” he continues.
“As for that top spot, Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett played very well in India so it would be naïve to think there’s a spot up for grabs right now, but sport has mysterious ways of working and if I can control what I do and get my races then if an opportunity arises I’m in the showcase.
‘I feel like my game has come full circle. When I started at Yorkshire I was quite an aggressive counter-attacking batsman.
Lees backs himself to get more playing time for England and knows Durham has a history of producing talent for England.
However, he is realistic with the likes of Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett in the England ranks.
‘Probably one of my greatest strengths was that I adapted to the situations and terrain in which we played.
“Like in any industry, you try to do what your line manager tells you to do, and we had a period with Chris Silverwood where he picked guys who were more draining.
“So I tried to play that way, and then with Ben and Baz I’m just trying to play the style they want.” What’s quite fortuitous for me is that I can play both.
‘The most important thing I wanted from last year was to not let the season define me as the typical cricketer who was left out of the Test team and is regaining his place.
‘Coming into this season, the obvious thing is can you back it up? Can you do it again?
While Lees’ runs have made him an important component of the Durham team that went unbeaten in 13 Division Two matches, finishing 66 points clear of the field, he has an added responsibility these days as white-ball captain of the club.
Describing a decade of limited cricket at Durham as “pretty disappointing”, he is hopeful that 2024 could be the year they settle on a clear team identity and develop greater consistency in performance.
Those two characteristics were on display when Durham accepted an invitation to take part in Zimbabwe’s domestic Twenty20 competition as part of his pre-season and returned home with the silverware.
Durham has a renewed vision and returned home with silverware from Zimbabwe’s domestic T20 competition.
The English guests claimed five group wins in five, despite exposing a group of youngsters such as Haydon Mustard, son of former England goalkeeper Phil, and promising seamer Luke Robinson, and then produced the piece de resistance, crushing the Eagles by 213 runs in the final, a record margin of victory in the history of global T20 leagues, bowling out their opponents for just 16 off 49 deliveries.
A result that sums up the limitless nature of the vision of a reborn club.
