Derbyshire CCC coach Welch backs coin-toss trial in county cricket

Derbyshire CCC chief Graeme Welch has welcomed the decision to trial a change to the pre-match coin-toss in the County Championship next season.
GRAEME WELCH -- "the best teams win on the best wickets".GRAEME WELCH -- "the best teams win on the best wickets".
GRAEME WELCH -- "the best teams win on the best wickets".

On the first morning of all fixtures in both divisions, before the toss, the visiting captain will be offered the opportunity of bowling first. If he declines, the toss will take place as normal. But if he accepts, there will be no toss.

The reason behind the ECB’s decision is to encourage counties to provide better pitches for four-day cricket, and elite performance director Welch is in full support of the idea.

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“I think it’s a good rule to bring in,” he said. “We are here to produce England cricketers and to play on the best pitches possible.

“There are a lot of teams trying to get out of the Second Division, and I believe that if you play on the best wicket, then the best team will win.

People who come to Derby think the ball moves all over the place, but actually, it’s the overhead conditions that cause that. Last year, we tried to take a bit of grass off the pitch to make it more even between bat and ball, and it seemed to work.

“Hopefully more games will go into day four which will bring a natural deterioration to the pitch. That will bring spinners into the game and give everybody a level playing field. It will teach us to play better cricket and more attritional cricket, and that can only be good.”

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