Loss of Gibson leaves attack worryingly bare
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Revolving door
A new senior coach in Tim Boon,
who stepped down as Duncan
Fletcher's technical analyst to
return to Grace Road after an
11-year absence. He replaces
James Whitaker, who was made
redundant from his post of
director of cricket. Fresh life has
been breathed into Jeremy Snape's
career following his promotion
from 2nd XI coach to take charge
of the first team. Mohammad
Asif's stint as overseas bowler is
likely to be cut short by Pakistan
tour commitments. Ottis Gibson
has joined Durham and Charl
Willoughby Somerset. Phil
DeFreitas, now 40, and Charlie
Dagnall, who was released, have
retired.
Winter wonderland
Boon has spent much of the
winter raising the club's profile
in the county and fostering links
with Leicester's sizeable Asian
community. The county
chairman Neil Davidson was
awarded a CBE for his services to
the dairy industry in the New Year
Honours List.
Strengths
Plenty of experience in both
batting and bowling. Boon's
coaching pedigree should allow
him to prove that you can teach
old dogs new tricks.
Weaknesses
The departure of Gibson - 104
Championship wickets in the last
two seasons - has left a huge hole
in the seam attack.
Best-case scenario
Proficient one-day team so strong
challenges in the Twenty20
Cup and for promotion in the
Pro40 League can be expected.
Championship promotion
candidates only if they can convert
more fifties into centuries and
find someone to take Gibson's
wickets.
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Worst-case scenario
Another season of near misses
if the batsmen again flatter to
deceive and the county cannot
strengthen the hugely depleted
seam attack.
Young one to watch
Stuart Broad. A tall seamer, and
son of ex-England opener Chris,
who made an encouraging debut
last year and will have benefited
from his winter with England A.
Key man
Hylton Ackerman. His reign
as county cricket's first Kolpak
captain was short-lived but the
former South Africa batsman still
made 1,000 Championship runs
last season.
What they say
"We are trying to create a no excuse
culture where there is
nothing that can distract the
players," says the senior coach
Boon. "If I can help each player
make a 2% improvement in his
game we are going to be up there."
Mark Wagh
Will be a difficult year,
especially losing last year's
leading wicket-taker Ottis Gibson.
Huge challenge for Snape but
excellent opportunities for the
younger players including the
highly-rated Broad.
Predictions County Championship 9th (D2) Pro40 7th (D2)
Odds 18/1. Click here for full odds and to place your bet.