Derbyshire 2026 County Championship Full Season Preview
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
by Ronan Alexander & The Cricket Draft
With the cricket season fast approaching, now is the time to ensure you and your club are covered! Don’t risk the season with under insurance & outdated valuations; contact ASI, the specialist sports broker and PCA partner, to get your club or your own policy sorted before the first ball is bowled.
County Championship Values for 2026
Banker, Wildcard, Young Gun & England Watch
Banker: Luis Reece (ALR) £7.2m
Batting at the top of the order and regularly taking the new ball gives Reece maximum opportunity to accumulate points through high match involvement. He has been a consistent performer both on the pitch and in The Cricket Draft over recent years. As the leading wicket-taker last summer, taking 50 wickets at an average of 19, including four five-wicket hauls and two 10-fers — he is an excellent choice. His value is further bolstered by opening the batting; he scored 643 runs with a century and four fifties in 16 innings, averaging 64.3. He was the fourth-highest point scorer in The Cricket Draft in 2025.
Wildcard: Martin Andersson (ALR) £5.9m
A shrewd signing from Middlesex last year, this all-rounder settled into his new home nicely with an impressive debut summer. He provides a more affordable alternative to Reece or Zak Chappell in the all-rounder category, typically batting at 7 or 8 and bowling heavy overs as a change seamer. While he will look to improve on his bowling return of 9 wickets at 54, his batting was standout; he amassed 745 runs at an average of 49.7, including three centuries and three fifties.
Young Gun: Harry Moore (BWL) £5.3m
A promising 18-year-old right-arm quick, he has impressed for the England Under-19s as well as in his County Championship and One Day Cup appearances. After being picked up by Birmingham Phoenix in the winter draft, a back injury unfortunately sidelined him for the entirety of last summer, halting his momentum in The Hundred. He will be aiming for a full recovery this season to build on what has been a stellar start to his career, setting aside last year’s injury frustrations.
England Watch: Shoaib Bashir (BWL) £6.6m
Having been England’s first-choice spinner over the last year, he fell out of favour during the 2025/26 Winter Ashes series. Now, after departing Somerset for a fresh start at Derbyshire, he has the opportunity to secure the regular game time needed to force his way back into the international side. With his Test career at a crossroads, this could be a defining “make or break” season for the young off-spinner.
Potential Starting XI for GW 1
2025 Review
Derbyshire narrowly missed out on promotion last summer, as Glamorgan pipped them to the final spot in Division One by just five points. Mickey Arthur’s side were tough to beat, losing only two of their 14 matches; however, they did have the joint-most draws across both divisions with nine. Part of Derbyshire’s success was that they had a solid core to their team, with eight players playing 11 or more matches. Both Caleb Jewell and Wayne Madsen passed the 1,000-run barrier, with the latter finishing as the third-top run-scorer in Division Two. Luis Reece was the top wicket-taker in the second tier, claiming 50 scalps and backing it up with 643 runs.
2025 Stat Attack
Wayne Madsen’s 1,158 runs were the 6th most in The Cricket Draft in 2025
Luis Reece’s 50 wickets were the most in Division Two and 5th most overall in the County Championship
Brooke Guest’s 43 catches were the 6th highest in 2025
For all ALRs valued less than £6.0m, Martin Andersson had the 4th most runs with 745 and 5th most points with 1,372
For ALRs valued £6.5m or less, Zak Chappell had the most wickets (34) and 7th most points (1,402)
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Player Ins & Outs
After impressing with over 1,000 runs at an average of 47.9 last summer, Australian opener Caleb Jewell returns for 2026 with availability for the whole summer. This could be the key to Derbyshire’s promotion push, as having a settled opening partnership featuring high overseas quality for the duration of the season is a proven recipe for success. Jewell made eight 50s and one ton last year, so he will be looking to convert those half-centuries into even bigger scores.
After having Blair Tickner for eight matches in 2025, Derbyshire now have County Championship overseas stalwart Mohammad Abbas in their armoury after terrific spells at Hampshire and, most recently, Nottinghamshire. His availability for the whole summer is another huge plus, and you will struggle to find a better overseas duo than this pair. The departure of spinner Alex Thomson has been swiftly addressed with the signing of Shoaib Bashir, which appears to be a very solid replacement, whilst Matthew Montgomery could be another shrewd addition to fit into the middle order, contribute some overs of spin, and fill the void left by the retired David Lloyd.
2026 Fixtures
Derbyshire kick off their campaign at home against recently relegated Worcestershire, before travelling to Old Trafford to take on Lancashire — two counties that will be striving for an immediate return to Division One. Their third match is at home to Gloucestershire, a repeat of the opening-day fixture last season where Derbyshire secured a nine-wicket win.
Mickey Arthur’s side began 2025 with an eight-game unbeaten run, and they will be looking to kick off 2026 in similar fashion. It promises to be a highly competitive league, with the likes of Middlesex and Lancashire remaining in the hunt alongside a relegated Durham and a strong Worcestershire outfit. Derbyshire will be aiming to match last year’s efforts, or even go one better, and their two defeats on home soil are something they will be looking to rectify to push towards the top end of the division.
