Kent 2026 County Championship Full Season Preview
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 2 days 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 Don’t risk the season with under insurance & outdated valuations; contact ASI, the specialist sports broker and PCA partner, to get your club or your own policy sorted before the first ball is bowled.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: Ben Compton (BAT) £7.1m
A steady and reliable opening batter who looks to glue the Kent innings together and set the platform for others around him. Happy to bat for long periods, he led the way at Canterbury last summer, making 1,386 runs at an average of 60.26, including five tons and three half-centuries. He was the second-highest run-scorer in county cricket last summer, with only Saif Zaib scoring more runs. He scored 1,869 points at an average of 143.77 per game in 2025.
Wildcard: Joey Evison (ALR) £6.8m
Still only 24, the young all-rounder has an important role within the Kent side and has high match involvement with what he can do with both bat and ball. He scored 753 runs in 2024 when Kent were in Division One, averaging 37.65, and last year made 511 runs at an average of 31.93. He has made nine half-centuries over the last two seasons, so he will be looking to get a century under his belt this term.
He took 19 wickets two years ago and 20 last year; this sets a benchmark for how many wickets you can expect from him across the campaign and is something he’ll be looking to improve on.
Young Gun: Jaydn Denly (BAT) £4.9m
Featured in eight games last summer having made his debut in 2024. A left-handed all-rounder who is flexible with where he bats, predominantly between 3–7 within the top/middle order. He also brings a left-arm spin option which earned him six wickets in the championship last summer, as well as his 345 runs. Was a cheap option last year at £4.7m and has only marginally increased, if he can nail down a regular spot, he can contribute with both bat and ball to collect points.
England Watch: Zak Crawley (BAT) £7.6m
Someone who is persistently under scrutiny within the Test setup and was part of the underwhelming Ashes series, so he will be looking to start the summer in top form to keep his place in the side and kick on. Played four matches last summer, scoring 219 runs in eight innings with a top score of 68 as he passed 50 three times. He will be aiming to improve on that this year when he features, having recently signed a new contract with the club.
Potential Starting XI for GW 1
2025 Review
Following their relegation from Division One in 2024, Kent aimed to bounce straight back to the top flight, but the season certainly didn’t go to plan. They started the campaign with consecutive wins over Northants and Middlesex before securing a draw against Gloucestershire, a more than encouraging start.
However, from that point, it all went a little downhill. The side failed to secure another victory, suffering a string of four consecutive defeats immediately following that draw. They eventually finished 29 points adrift at the foot of the table behind second-bottom Northants, leaving them with plenty of work to do ahead of the 2026 summer.
With only Joey Evison and Matt Parkinson taking more than 20 wickets and just two other players reaching double figures, it is no surprise they have added Matt Milnes to their ranks and prioritised bringing in overseas bowling talent. This strengthening of the bowling attack, mixed in with a strong looking top-order, 2026 could well be far more positive!
2025 Stat Attack
Ben Compton was the second-highest run-scorer in the division, with 1,386 runs to his name.
Grant Stewart hit 24 sixes last summer, the joint-highest total in county cricket.
Stewart also recorded the ninth-highest points per game for all-rounders valued at £7.0m or less; his 15 wickets and aggressive batting were key to this success.
Among players who scored more than 150 runs (with Stewart totalling 675), he maintained the second-highest strike rate in county cricket (86.3).
Matt Parkinson’s 35 wickets were the fifth-most for a spin bowler during the campaign.
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Player Ins & Outs
After a year to forget in 2025, Kent have looked to make significant improvements on the pitch ahead of the new season. They have bolstered their batting unit with the return of Sam Northeast, who has been a prolific performer at Hampshire and Glamorgan in recent years. Northeast, who spent a decade at Kent between 2007 and 2017, returns to familiar territory on a two-year contract, looking to help turn around the club’s fortunes. Another player heading back to Canterbury is Matt Milnes, who rejoins from Yorkshire. Milnes previously enjoyed a successful spell at Kent from 2019 to 2022 after starting his career at Nottinghamshire.
However, the squad has lost Jack Leaning, who had become a key player across all three formats during his time at the club. Leaning has made the switch to Sussex, while Marcus O’Riordan also departs. Regarding their overseas business, the club has finalised its department for the year: Keith Dudgeon and Glenton Stuurman are set to start the season at the St Lawrence Ground, with Senuran Muthusamy scheduled to link up with the squad later in the campaign.
2026 Fixtures
Kent had a promising start to last season but face a tough task on the opening day with a trip to recently relegated Durham. They then host Northamptonshire before traveling to the other relegated side, Worcestershire. Gameweeks 7–11 look like a difficult spell, featuring games against Durham and Lancashire before consecutive fixtures against Middlesex. Kent will finish the campaign with two home games in a row against Lancashire and Gloucestershire. They will hope that by the time those games come around, they’ll be in a position to challenge for the promotion places.
Can Kent completely change their 2025 fortunes around?
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