These are times of greed and gluttony for County Championship batters. Contrary to popular perception, April can be a great month for run-making, the pitches slow, low and not yet hardened by the summer sun; bowlers likewise still working up to full fitness and ferocity. We are but three weeks into the Championship season but already the draw has begun to dominate; it is a reflection of a flawed scoring system that Leicestershire topped the Division Two table ahead of two-win Kent after the opening couple of weeks but also evidence of the batting points on offer for those willing to gorge on some Lent runs.
A scan of the centurions so far in the English summer reveals a varied bunch, particularly at the top of the order. Dom Sibley, perhaps a more complete player than when he earned his international caps, has prevented Surrey’s title defence enduring an early derailment; Alex Lees, another who looks better for time out of the Test side rather than it, again looks in good touch for Durham, even if young partner Ben McKinney is rapidly bludgeoning his way into the England selectors’ sights.
Rob Yates and Tom Haines may not yet be in contention for higher honours but are the top-performing professionals any county would desire. Among the other century-making openers are two more makeshift options in Leicestershire’s Rehan Ahmed and Essex’s Paul Walter – anatomically contrasting, each has thrived in fulfilling a new brief away from their usual lower middle-order habitat.
Yet there is one opener not yet having taken his place at the feast – and the problem for England is that he is their incumbent. One could have forgiven Zak Crawley for taking the Lord’s name in vain after his first-innings dismissal against Gloucestershire on Easter weekend, the Kent batter caught behind via first slip’s shin after Cameron Green had seemingly shelled a sitter.
Chaos... but vitally the ball stays up! https://t.co/JfV63m0mX1 pic.twitter.com/hAYJv2OiUw
— Gloucestershire Cricket 🏆 (@Gloscricket) April 19, 2025
Another early exit nonetheless improved the 27-year-old’s average in the first dig this summer from 0.50 to 0.67, scores of one, nought and one an illustration of the harsh realities of the top order. A buccaneering 58 to set up an outstanding fourth-innings run chase of 316 against Middlesex was a better representation of his talent, and it was pleasing to see Crawley back that up with a half-century that proved vital in Kent hanging on for a draw against Gloucestershire.
But the overall picture remains troubling. We have been here before with a player of glorious gifts as yet unable to fulfil his obvious talent, of course, but even for a batter prone to feats of famine this is a prolonged tough spell. Before that second innings at Canterbury on Easter Monday, he had batted 23 times for 292 runs across formats returning from a finger injury against Pakistan in October, a horror tour of New Zealand followed by a wretched SA20 stint that saw him end his winter out of the Sunrisers Eastern Cape side.
It is far from an ideal start for a year that could define both this England regime and Crawley himself. For this is no longer an inexperienced individual. Only eight Englishman have opened the innings more often than the tall Kent batter has in his 53 Tests. Displaying the differences between two cricketing cultures, Crawley has played only about 30 fewer first-class games than Virat Kohli, Test cricket’s 19th-leading run-scorer.
Crawley remains the great England enigma, a mystery wrapped in a riddle of contradictions and questions. The national team’s faith has so far been justified by one exceptional Ashes, when he roughed up one of cricket’s great seam attacks, and the fleeting, intoxicating highs in between. Yet when one would expect a domineering dasher coming into his prime to dominate – like in these early weeks – he cannot.
The Crawley culture wars have long since been fought and one would not anticipate an alteration in England’s approach towards an establishment figure. He is not alone in having received the management’s backing based more on potential than proof, and 10 Tests against India and Australia are the sort of challenges to which he has shown the ability to rise. A strummed 77 at Sydney was a rare bright moment in England’s dark last trip Down Under – one would fancy a good player of bounce and pace to go well again later this year, and he remains a perfect foil to the contrasting Ben Duckett.
But there is a looming logjam at the top of the order without an obvious solution. The breakthrough performances of Jacob Bethell in New Zealand have put pressure, perhaps, on the place of vice-captain Ollie Pope, who still looks a better fit in the middle order than at No 3, given Jamie Smith is sure to return with the wicketkeeping gloves after his paternity leave. Duckett, Joe Root, Harry Brook and Stokes are irreplaceable.
A squad for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge from 22 May is expected soon. Luke Wright, England selector, suggested last week that Bethell, yet to feature at the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Royal Challengers Bangalore, will not be called back from his bench-warming to feature, perhaps leaving him still on the outside looking in when the five-match engagement against India begins.
Yet Crawley should not feel totally secure of his place. McKinney is clearly a coming force, well-liked by England and beginning to show the ability to both absorb and transfer pressure. Taller even than the lanky Crawley, there are shades of Marcus Trescothick in his stroke-making; it may be that he is called up to the squad for that Zimbabwe game.
Beyond that? For the first time in a long while, England seem blessed with top-order options – and if Crawley’s poor form continues, they will have a decision to make.
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