Jordan and Lancefield - what might have been?

I'll say at the outset of this post that no conclusions can be drawn on the basis of one innings, for either a batsman or a bowler. But the cases of Chris Jordan and Tom Lancefield raise some interesting questions today owing to their impressive performances for their respective clubs.

Jordan returned figures of 6-48 on his Sussex debut and by all accounts bowled with no little skill (and pace). In five seasons with Surrey he had failed to register a single five wicket haul. He skips town to our South Coast rivals and lo and behold, he's bagged one in his first game. When he departed the club at the end of 2012 I came to the conclusion that a change of scenery might just do the trick for him. Based on today's efforts, it certainly has.

The talented allrounder never wanted for chances at Surrey. He played 40 first class matches for the club but in addition to no five-fors he also never scored a hundred, in fact only registering four fifties in his time. A talent unfulfilled or not much of a talent at all? The general consensus, not least from Mark Ramprakash who tweeted his thoughts here is the former, so what went wrong?

He certainly had his fair share of injury, missing the entirety of 2010 with a back injury and there were others besides which won't have helped his progression one iota. Perhaps he wasn't given the guidance and coaching he needed, or maybe he didn't work hard enough at his own game? You might get different versions of the same story from player and club. Rory Hamilton-Brown talked of Sussex being a more "caring" club - maybe that is how Jordan needs to feel about his surroundings as well. If he continues down the road he started on today with Sussex the talk of an England career will be revived before long. If his talent with bat and ball begins to be fulfilled it will begin to look like a very poor decision by Surrey to let him leave the club.

Tom Lancefield's is a different case entirely. Today he scored a match winning hundred for Gloucestershire's Second XI against Surrey. "So what?" I hear you cry. Well a Second XI fixture it might've been, but the bowling attack, featuring Tremlett, Meaker, Lewis, Linley and Keedy was very definitely that of the first team.

In three seasons at Surrey he only played seven first class fixtures, all of them during the 2010 season and all of them doing the tricky job of opening the innings. Nonetheless he still managed to average 32 with a couple of fifties from 11 innings. Not great, but not a disgrace when you look at the record of Surrey opening batsmen in recent years.

Quite what he did wrong, and on what basis he was adjudged to have failed at Surrey, is a mystery. Of course we are blessed with some extraordinary batting talent at the club this season but there isn't a huge amount of depth to the squad in that respect. Whatever the process was in coming to the decision to jettison the 22 year old Lancefield, he's gone and I hope he secures himself a full time deal elsewhere. Today's hundred will have been all the sweeter for being against his old club.

Whether both Lancefield and Jordan make their old club really live to regret letting them depart remains to be seen. Every club says goodbye to players who go on to make it big (or nearly big) somewhere else and as I said above any definitive judgement is hugely premature, but it will be fascinating to see how the pair develop during the 2013 season. And in the absence of a Surrey match this week it does at least give me something to worry about.

2013 Preview Part III - The Bowlers (and the others)

There was a time way back in 2008 when our battery of pace bowlers could only fairly be described as "flat". An attack led by Pedro Collins and Jimmy Ormond, neither in their prime, wasn't frightening anyone. Fast-forward five years and now its a challenge to find a better collection of bowlers in either division. With everyone fit and firing our bowlers will create chances on most surfaces.

Given that Surrey's ranks of allrounders have steadily been depleted in recent years, with the departure of first Chris Schofield and then Chris Jordan and Matt Spriegel, I've included the remainder in the preview below.

Stuart Meaker
Meaker has been a key part of our four day attack for a couple of years now. As with so many young express fast bowlers he’s had his share of injuries, missing 12 matches over the last two seasons (though some of those have been due to Lions duty) but when he has played he’s been crucial. He’s taken 116 wickets at 24 since the start of 2010, no one has taken more five wicket hauls for Surrey in that time. He can be devastating with the red ball, never more so than during the Somerset game at the Oval last year when he took 8-52, including the prize wickets of Hildreth and Kieswetter. He's been away with various England squads this winter but the returns haven't been stellar, just 11 wickets in 10 matches (though much of his cricket has been in tough subcontinental conditions). He'll be much more of a handful once the county season gets back underway.

Jade Dernbach
2012 wasn't Dernbach's finest. He was identified by the club as one of a "small minority group" who last year became "entrapped" in the pitfalls of London life. Dernbach is a player who divides opinion, on and off the pitch, but I for one think he deserves another (final) chance with Surrey. He's played his heart out for the club, occasionally through injury and never without plenty of guts, from a very early age and above all he's an unusually talented bowler. In the longer format he's under rated and can bowl economical spells, although he's not always as probing as you'd like. In limited overs matches he is a match winner. He had a torrid international winter, taking just five wickets in four ODIs in India, ending the series with an average of 49 and an economy rate of 7.34, comfortably the worst on either side. He is also now notoriously the most expensive bowler in the history of ODIs. He made more of an impact in the T20s in New Zealand however, taking six wickets in three matches. A desire to play Tremlett back into fitness, Meaker's superior pace and Lewis's batting may ultimately squeeze Dernbach out of the Surrey Championship side initially.

Jon Lewis
Have I mentioned that Lewis had a tricky second half of 2012? Sometimes it feels like I never write anything else about the bloke. He took only eight wickets in the final eight games of last season, but it shouldn’t be forgotten how much of a handful he was in his first five games, grabbing 23 wickets at less than 20 apiece. He adds a fair amount of steel to the lower order and if we elect to field five bowlers Lewis may find himself a place in the XI. Needs to sort out the no-ball issue, while the wickets dried up the free runs didn’t – he gave away precisely 100 runs simply by over-stepping in 2012. He reiterated his batting ability with a better than a run-a-ball fifty against Gloucestershire Second XI today.

Chris Tremlett
Just the one lacklustre appearance in 2012 for the injury plagued seamer did not bode well for the remainder of his career but the winter has given him a chance to regroup and recover. England still have designs on him for the Ashes as Steve Finn has yet to definitively nail down a place in the starting XI but he’ll have to prove his fitness first. There is no doubt that on form and fully fit, Tremlett is one of the best bowlers in the country. As part of a five man attack he can be devastating, but if we only field four bowlers his workload might be deemed too high. Strangely he didn’t play in the pre-season fixture against Kent and I’m not sure he bowled a heap of overs against Hampshire (though he did collect the wicket of Jimmy Adams). He’ll need to bowl plenty of overs for the Second XI this week if he is to have a hope of making the first fixture; playing later in the month or into May could be more realistic.

Tim Linley
Seven matches, and only three in the first 11 fixtures, seems like scant reward for the man who took 73 wickets in 2011. It seems like scant reward because it is. And when Linley did get on the park last season he didn’t disgrace himself with 16 wickets at 29 each, including a five-for against a powerful Nottinghamshire attack. He will probably have to be satisfied with another bit-part in 2013 as the more fashionable Meaker, Dernbach and Tremlett and the more expert batsman, Lewis, sneak ahead of him in the pecking order. He was the most economical seamer in the attack in the game against Kent last week, picking up two wickets in the process, which will give Adams food for thought.

George Edwards
Edwards was the Matt Dunn of 2012. He played just the two games, against Worcestershire and Somerset, but took five wickets including an explosive 4-44 against the former. He was expensive, leaking 4.1 runs per over but he is a genuine quick, and tall to boot. He is yet to pass his 21st birthday so occasional rather than relentless first team cricket is no bad thing.

Matt Dunn
Having burst into the first XI in 2011 as Jade Dernbach’s replacement against Derbyshire (he took 5-56 in a victory), Dunn was infuriatingly under-bowled in the subsequent fixture against Gloucestershire and he’s only featured for the first team once since. Injury got in the way in 2012, as did Edwards’ explosive debut, but if he can get himself fit this year, a backup seam attack of Edwards, Linley and Dunn himself is very handy indeed.

Gary Keedy
Much like fellow winter recruit Vikram Solanki, 2012 was hardly vintage Keedy but also like Solanki, there’s probably some life in the old dog yet. In his defence his chances were only limited in Championship cricket last season because of Lancashire’s admirable policy of blooding their younger spinners, rather than Keedy being poor. He is one of County Cricket’s quiet achievers, our attack has been crying out for a Keedy or a Dean Cosker for many a year so we should count our blessings. Quite how he fits into the side is another matter, but don’t be surprised to see Adams plump for two spinners at the Oval regularly. Keedy wasn’t signed to sit on the sidelines and when his capture was announced last year Adams said “very few counties are as committed to a two spinner policy as Surrey”.

Freddie van den Bergh
The Surrey man of whom we have seen the least in recent years, mainly because he is still at University and has only appeared for Surrey against the MCCU sides. However he comes highly regarded and with Batty and Keedy on the books at Surrey as well, he has two very able masters to learn from. If he plays any role in the first team at all it is only likely to be on wearing pitches at the very end of the season. One for the future certainly.

The allrounders

Gareth Batty
Surrey’s hero of 2012, Batty’s reputation was so enhanced that by the end of the season Surrey were referred to in some quarters simply as “Team GB”. His bowling figures were helped by some very spin friendly Oval pitches, but it’s worth noting that his wickets came cheaper than his spinning colleague Murali Kartik’s on those pitches. The ball might be turning but wickets don’t just take themselves. His batting was poor though, including 13 single figure scores and no score higher than 36. His batting is not that of a reliable number seven. He can expect some more dry Oval wickets this year and his grit and determination ought to fit in nicely with Messrs Smith and Ponting.

Tom Jewell
21 year old allrounder Jewell has been knocking around the Surrey squad for a good few years. It may have surprised some when his contract was extended at the end of 2012, perhaps largely thanks to his score of 70 in the game against Lancashire, but Jewell has earned his chance. He’s only played three Championship matches for Surrey, but he’s never been involved in a defeat. His bowling is unlikely to terrify many Division One top order batsmen but as a fifth bowler it would be more than adequate. It would be a crime to see Jewell stew in the Second XI while some of his colleagues in the autumn of their careers are persisted with.

Zafar Ansari
It feels like an age since Ansari made his full Surrey debut in late 2010, so much so that he already feels like a fixture despite having never yet actually played a full season for the club. He is no less exciting a player for the passage of time and I still can’t wait for him to be a permanent member of the squad. His thirteen innings opening the batting last season brought only one score of 50 or more (that 257 ball epic at Edgbaston), and an average below 20. Hopefully 2013 will see him allowed to develop in the middle order, though he certainly has the talent and attitude to return to the top of the order at some point in his career. He is something of a Jekyll and Hyde as a batsman, his obduracy in Championship cricket makes way for a prodigious six hitting ability in limited overs cricket. His tricky left arm spin also tends to be more effective in the shorter formats.

2013 Preview Part II - the batsmen

In last season's preview I was adamant that the batting was our weakest department. Since then we've lost Hamilton-Brown, Ramprakash, Spriegel, Lancefield and of course Tom Maynard. We are certainly not blessed with large numbers of batsmen, but the ones we have are a pretty handy bunch. It still doesn't quite replicate the strength we have in the seam bowling department for example, but there are plenty of positives to draw on.

Being light on numbers, there is a concern over a lack of competition for the batting slots. If some of the players who struggled for form in 2012 continue to do so, Adams may find himself short of alternatives. Here's a player-by-player account of the options at his disposal:

Graeme Smith:
What to say about the man who in the last nine months has hit the following milestones: 100 tests (against England at the Oval), 100 tests as captain (against Pakistan at the Wanderers) and most test wins as captain (winning his 49th test vs. Pakistan, overhauling Ponting's record). It seems scarcely believable that such a colossus of the international game will be turning out for Surrey this month (assuming his dodgy ankle isn’t too dodgy of course). Any extended period he can spend in and around the club will be of immense value. Not just in passing on his skills as a batsman but also in impressing his attitude on a group of players, many of whom are still finding their way in cricket. His work ethic, combined with that of the other "big beasts" of the batting order, Zander de Bruyn and Vikram Solanki, could see the side transformed. After the disappointment of Jacques Rudolph last year, this South African opener won't let us down.

Rory Burns:
One of very few genuine bright spots in 2012, Rory Burns' emergence as a genuine talent and a genuine opener was a massive bonus. The last three seasons have seen 17 players tried in the openers' slots but we go in to 2013 reasonably certain of the opening partnership. Young players are always susceptible to the mysterious "second season syndrome" that can make the first one seem like a fluke, and undoubtedly Division One bowlers have had a good look at him now and life will be tougher for him. However such was Burns' composure in taking on the tricky opener's role, and in tricky circumstances I have high hopes that he'll continue where he left off. His pre-season form suggest’s he’ll be fine with scores of 39* and 79 against Hampshire and Kent.

Ricky Ponting:
More than a few eyebrows were raised as Surrey's spending splurge continued apace, following the signing of Graeme Smith with that of former Australia captain Ponting. He comes at a price sure, but his Sheffield Shield form this season shows that the price is warranted. Although he's 38 he still topped the Shield batting with 911 runs at 76, with three hundreds in nine matches as he collected his first winners medal. His grit and leadership skills will come in more than handy when Smith is unavailable, and the younger batsmen in the side will benefit from his vast experience.

Arun Harinath:
This is a big year for Harinath. He was given the final six fixtures of the 2012 season to perform and nail down a place in the side. He didn't do that beyond doubt, but he did a very solid job, averaging 37 in the number three slot with two hundreds. It was the first time in a while that he'd been given a lengthy run in the first XI and there was nothing to suggest he should be replaced in the side for 2013. He is a mentally very strong player, and while he doesn't have a huge array of shots (though he has expanded significantly in the last 18 months or so) he is very intelligent, and technically sound. He will have to make the most of his talents, but there are few who work harder at their game. To my mind it is important that Harinath is backed to continue in the number three slot ahead of Solanki.

Vikram Solanki:
37 years old and just a single hundred in 2012 does not make especially pretty reading for Surrey fans expecting Solanki to form a key part of an experienced middle order. However, his 2011 was markedly better and let's face it, how many batsmen had a great time of it last summer? Age is not necessarily a barrier to big runs, Mark Ramprakash was 36 when he scored 2,278 runs in 2006 and he scored a few more after that. Solanki isn't the batsman Ramps was but he's still a fine player capable of scoring plenty of runs. He's used to the number three slot but I'm hopeful that that will be the reserve of Harinath, and such an experienced player at number four is no bad thing. His pre-season form, just 22 runs in two games, could give Adams cause for concern, he may have to make an outing for the Second XI this week to find some form. If he does, and he and Steven Davies ever get into top gear in partnership make sure you’re there to watch it.

Zander de Bruyn:
Such a rock of the Surrey batting order in 2011, de Bruyn endured a torrid time of it in 2012 registering just a single hundred in the final fixture, adding something of a gloss to his numbers. His returns over the winter in South Africa have been worryingly similar, averaging an identical 26 from 17 innings with no hundreds, suggesting that last season's form may be the rule rather than the exception. Should his mediocre run continue he will surely be put out to pasture. Nonetheless a return to form would be most welcome, if nothing else his part time military medium can be useful in early season conditions, allowing three seamers to be played. His winter form with the ball - 21 wickets at 26 – was significantly better than his batting. He’s been missing throughout Surrey’s pre-season so far because of T20 duty in South Africa and since he hasn’t faced a delivery since the 9th of February, Adams will be taking something of a gamble if he’s selected for the first game.

Steven Davies:
Davies revealed earlier this year that he has been struggling with depression after the death of Tom Maynard and that may explain his poor form in the latter half of 2012. In truth it is some time since we saw the best of Steven Davies but it would be wrong to doubt that he's any less of the glorious strokemaker we saw in 2010 and 2011 - you know what they say about form and class. He's fallen way down the England pecking order with the emergence of Buttler and Bairstow, so we will get a full season out of him in 2012. If he finds himself again he can be a terrific asset in all forms of the game. A withering pre-season hundred against Kent this week provided a hint that he might be back on track.

Jason Roy:
Another who was hit hard by the events of last June, Roy frequently looked all at sea in 2012. He still shows those flashes of brilliance but I can't escape the feeling that his game hasn't moved on at the pace it seemed to be doing under the watchful eye of Graham Thorpe. He doesn’t suffer from a lack of talent, he can go as far as he wants in the game, but the club need to make sure he is allowed to develop into the batting powerhouse he surely can be. Like Davies, Roy too can dominate in all forms of the game. His style is of course more suited to the shorter formats but if he can tighten up his technique and play the occasional innings like the one we saw against Warwickshire last year (42 not out from 101 balls to help secure the draw), he will give our middle order real potency. A settled place in the batting lineup would help, since he came into the side in 2010 he’s batted in every position in the top seven aside from number four. He’ll be hoping that scores of 56 and 58* will persuade Adams to give him a run in the side from the get go.

Gary Wilson:
I've said before how I've come full circle on Wilson. Where I once thought he was a pointless selection, I now think he can be a valuable player in all formats, whether he takes the gloves or not. He is an intelligent batsman, he showed that on his way to 182 runs in just six T20 matches last year while much of the rest of the batting floundered. He will again disappear for Ireland for a couple of games in May, and one each in June and July. Wilson is without question right to choose his country over his county as they strive towards test status, but his ability to hold down a regular place in the side will be hampered by his absence.

Kevin Pietersen:
We probably won't see a great deal of Pietersen this year, certainly less than we saw of him in 2012 due to unforeseen circumstances. There is the tantalising prospect of him and Graeme Smith taking to the field together in the Championship game against Durham at the Oval in May, depending on Pietersen’s knee injury, and the even more tantalising prospect of he, Smith and Ponting all turning out against Middlesex in the T20 in July. If last year's outings are anything to go by, his limited appearances are unlikely to disappoint.

Dominic Sibley:
This prodigiously talented 17 year old opener might just sneak himself a bit of first team cricket towards the end of the season and I wouldn't bet against him making an impact. He was away with the England U19 side over the winter and despite being one of the younger members of the squad he made something of a name for himself. In six matches he scored three fifties and a hundred, the hundred being a bat-carrying effort in an innings in which the next highest score was 29. He can expect a lot of Second XI cricket which ought to toughen him up for a challenging first team debut.

The 2013 season is almost upon us

Firstly I must apologise for my extended absence from the blogosphere save for marking the signings of Smith and Ponting. In truth, there hasn't been a whole lot of other news to report in that time, but nonetheless I have neglected the blog. As well as continuing to maintain this venerable old girl as much as ever during the season, I’ll also be contributing to Cricinfo’s network of county supporter-bloggers, my first effort can be found here.

In any case, here we are just a matter of days from the start of the County Championship season. What will 2013 bring and are there reasons to be cheerful for the Surrey faithful after a distinctly sombre 2012 season?

There will likely be something of a shift, some of the success of the last three seasons in one day cricket may be foregone, hopefully in exchange for some better returns in four day cricket. A new captain will bring new methods. Rory Hamilton-Brown wasn’t a bad captain, he was given a massive job at a very young age, but he wasn’t especially good either. For all the instinctive bowling changes that won us CB40 matches, there was too often a lack of flexibility and adventure in four day cricket. Not to mention the occasional game where he just went missing, literally in the case of the Horsham game last year where he spent long periods off the field after a night on the town.

Graeme Smith is the big (physically and otherwise) reason to be cheerful, or at least hopeful, for 2013. The man who this year became the most successful captain in the history of Test cricket in winning his 49th test as leader of the South African team, should be available for around 10 Championship matches, as long as his troublesome ankle doesn't flare up. And when he’s not around mid-season there’ll be the small matter of the next most successful captain in test history - Ricky Ponting - in his stead.

Compared with last year there is a more experienced look to a pared-down squad. Given the goings on last season, that is surely a good thing. Last year runs were hard to come by, but even seen through the prism of one of the soggiest summers on record, our batting was poor. The recruitment of Smith and Solanki ought to help that, but the likes of de Bruyn, Davies and Roy know they will also have to improve on last year’s efforts. The bowlers plugged away admirably given the circumstances. Meaker was exceptional, Batty too. Lewis might have tailed off disastrously but he never stopped running in.

So what is realistic for the Championship this season? Just as it was last year, any talk of challenging for the title would be overly hopeful. Having said that, given the level of investment in the playing staff (and the recruitment of a new bowling coach – still no full time batting coach though) senior management can be forgiven for expecting better this year. Much better. In four seasons Adams has won 16 Championship matches, or roughly a quarter of all matches played. His predecessor Alan Butcher won closer to a third of his matches in charge. It’s a simplistic comparison to make, but not entirely unfair. Adams has been given the chance to overhaul the squad...twice. The level of resource he’s had at his disposal is unprecedented in the County game. The time for excuses has long since passed. I hope to see Smith given the freedom he needs to make the squad his own.

A season bumping along the lower reaches of the table shouldn’t be tolerated, we have the players to compete with the best of the division on our day, though the overall squad short of the very best. The difference between a good Division One side (we’re a good side) and a very good one can’t be boiled down to one thing, but batting depth is an important factor. Our bowling attack is the equal, at least, of a side like Warwickshire, but our batting is nowhere near as resilient. At the end of last season they had Jeetan Patel, a man with a batting average of 20, at number 11. To have someone like Woakes, who would comfortably bat in our top five, at number seven is such a luxury, and a key reason as to why they’re so tough to beat.

Surrey have to be aiming for fourth or better. It’d be nice to beat Middlesex who were excellent last year and have added to their side well over the winter. Aiming for mid-table might not sound terribly ambitious but Division One is very tough, and 16 games is a long old season. It goes without saying that the more games Smith plays, the better. Not just for his batting talents at the top of the order, though that will be most welcome, but also for his attitude and discipline.

So what will the make-up of the side be this season? There are probably two key issues at play; spinners and Chris Tremlett. When Gary Keedy was signed Chris Adams said that, as with much of the latter part of last season, two spinners would be employed particularly in home games. This creates something of a conundrum, especially when you consider the Tremlett factor.

England seem very keen to get Tremlett fit for the summer, which means Surrey will probably look to play him where possible. And why not? He’s a magnificent bowler. However the need to manage his workload probably means playing five bowlers, three seamers and two spinners. Last season a combination of Chris Jordan, Jewell, Spriegel, Ansari and de Bruyn provided fill-in overs. To begin with at least only Jewell and de Bruyn are available to do that job this time round. Having been omitted from the pre-season friendly squads, Jewell can (unfortunately) probably be discounted. Will captain and coach be happy enough to fall back on Zander de Bruyn’s medium pacers as a third seam bowling option? They may well do, but if not Gareth Batty has to bat in the top seven, which on the evidence of last season may be a bit ambitious. As for the remaining bowlers, Meaker and Lewis (because of his batting) are probably at the head of the queue, Dernbach and Linley in close pursuit.

The top order is pretty certain. Smith and Burns will open the batting, Arun Harinath must be given a chance to make the number three slot his own and Vikram Solanki will therefore have to make do with batting at number four. Five and six will likely be taken by de Bruyn and Steven Davies, and whether or not number seven is a batsman or Gareth Batty depends on the issues above. If it is to be a batsman then Jason Roy and Gary Wilson will have to duke it out, though personally I’d back one of those two younger men ahead of the admirable but ageing Solanki.

As I said above results in the limited overs games, and particularly the CB40 may be hard to come by. The power of Hamilton-Brown and Maynard is now gone, along with the very useful bowling of Matthew Spriegel and of course the exceptional fielding of all three. Players like Keedy and Solanki are unlikely to be able to maintain that standard in the field. The recipe for success in previous years, based largely around strangling the opposition with over after over of spin will have to be scaled back somewhat and another method will need to be found. Surrey in the Adams era have never quite managed to get to grips with Twenty20 and it’s hard to see that changing this season either. An appearance at finals day feels more unlikely than in previous seasons.

On balance I think most members would trade some of the consistent CB40 success of the last couple of years for a few more Championship wins. I know I would. That has to be the focus of this season and the winter recruitment is reassuringly red-ball focussed. After last year's stuttering and frustrating early run of fixtures, getting up and running quickly is very important.

Over the coming days I'll be doing an in depth preview of the options on the playing staff, starting tomorrow with the batsmen.

Ponting signs as Smith cover

If, after beating the drop with a game to spare, you'd told me that in the next season we'd have turning out for us the two most successful captains in test match history, I'd have laughed in your face. But so it has come to pass, Ricky Ponting will play in Graeme Smith's place when he's away with South Africa, and alongside him in the Twenty20.

Ponting played his last test in December and since then he's been gorging himself at the table of Australian domestic cricket. First he played in seven of the Hobart Hurricanes' Big Bash League fixtures, scoring 236 runs at 39 in the process. He's also scored just shy of 600 Sheffield Shield runs at an average of 119, including an unbeaten double hundred in Tasmania's most recent match. And for good measure he's scored 200 one day runs. The bloke can very definitely still bat at the grand old age of 38.

He doesn't have especially happy memories of the Oval of course, having lost the last two Ashes series in England at the ground. Hopefully he'll see his two month mid-season stint as a chance to put some of those memories to rest.

Having gone into last season with a comparatively young, inexperienced side we will now have some very experienced pros making up our top six. A squad that had an average age of about 25 last year is now more like 28. Where four players aged between 22 and 25 departed the club at the end of last season, four have since been signed aged between 32 and 38. The change of tack is clear and the watchword is experience. For the younger contingent, the likes of Burns, Ansari, Roy and Harinath the summer of 2013 could be a critical and valuable time in their career development. Who better than Smith and Ponting to bring those players up to the next level?

What cannot be in doubt is that the club are backing the current management with some serious spending. No other coach in county cricket has been afforded the kind of playing budget Chris Adams has at his disposal this year. With such significant investment comes the pressure to succeed, and succeed quickly. A middling season is unlikely to be tolerated. There have been suggestions that Adams' role at the club is being marginalised, and with the departure of Hamilton-Brown - the man hand-picked by Adams to lead the team in his image - its hard to avoid coming to that conclusion. If indeed that is the case it need not be a negative for anyone concerned, if the likes of Smith and Ponting (and perhaps Solanki too) take a more active role in leading the team, maybe Adams will have more time to dedicate to coaching.

It is not just the calibre of player that is significant, but also the type of player. In signing Smith and Ponting, two of the most disciplined and determined players the game has ever seen, Surrey have signaled that attitudes have to change. Nothing less than absolute commitment will be tolerated.

One thing's for sure, 2013 is going to be a fascinating season for Surrey fans. Roll on April.

Skipper Smith Signs for Surrey

Rumour had it some while ago that Surrey were on the verge of signing Graeme Smith. I must admit to a certain amount of scepticism then and in the subsequent weeks but lo and behold this morning the club announced the capture of the South African captain on a three year deal.

Make no mistake, this is a massive coup. The Guardian have called it "arguably the most eye catching and significant piece of recruitment in a decade". We all know the turmoil that engulfed the club last year. We lost a captain, we lost a legend, we lost several other very talented players and to be perfectly frank we lost our way. Smith can be the factor that turns the club around, provided he is allowed sufficient control over matters.

For a player of his stature and experience to commit to a three year deal is hugely significant. He will be able to build on the existing squad under his captaincy and although he'll only be available for 10 Championship games next year (he remains a key player in South Africa's Test and ODI sides) in the years after that he will hopefully be available even more. Next June he has the Champions Trophy (6th June - 23rd June if South Africa make the final) and then a limited overs tour to Sri Lanka which involves five ODIs and three Twenty20s, which Smith hasn't partaken in at international level since October 2011.

From the outside Surrey looked to be floundering a little. The Hamilton-Brown affair reared its ugly head again with some comments from Chris Adams in the Sunday Times and all told there was a bit of a bitter taste in the mouth. The signing of Smith signals that we do mean business.

There remains a couple of issues with the playing staff. We have a whole heap of players in the latter stages of their careers (Keedy, Batty, Lewis, de Bruyn, Solanki) and a good chunk still starting out (Burns, Roy, Harinath, Ansari) with very little in between. There's also not a huge amount of competition in the batting, but without question Smith's arrival allays a fair few concerns. He will lead the side, he will open the batting and he brings a huge amount of experience.

There's also the not insignificant issue of who will captain the side in his absence. The Independent reports that he will select his vice captain once he has assessed the squad. Presumably Gareth Batty will be at the head of the queue, followed closely by de Bruyn, Solanki and previous VC Steven Davies.

I will be interested to see how Smith's appointment changes the balance of power at Surrey. It is well known that Adams and Hamilton-Brown had a very close relationship, the latter being recruited as skipper at the former's request. Whether that relationship got too comfortable is a matter for debate but Smith, as the most experienced captain in the history of test cricket, will be his own man. To my mind this can only be a good thing.

Smith's record barely needs any comment from me, suffice it to say it is outstanding. In ten years as captain of South Africa (remaining captain for ten years is no mean feat in itself) he's won 44 of 94 tests, losing just 26, he averages very nearly 50 as skipper and has scored 23 test hundreds.

It is fairly well known now that there was something of an outbreak of ill-discipline at Surrey in 2012. What the club need is a man who's going to come in and cut the crap, of all the players in world cricket Graeme Smith seems the ideal candidate to do just that.

Last but not least credit is due here to the senior management at the club, particularly Richards Gould and Thompson, the Chief Executive and Chairman respectively. Credit too to Alec Stewart, who apparently played a key role in making first contact with Smith to get the ball rolling.

All in all Surrey fans across the board will be delighted with this signing. Apart from anything else a player like Smith is as close to a guarantee of runs as is possible in county cricket. I can't wait to see him lead the side out in April next year.

Adams adds Keedy as squad takes shape

Chris Adams 2013 squad continues to take shape as the veteran left arm spinner Gary Keedy was added to the Surrey roster on a two year contract.

I have long hankered after an English spinner, ideally a left armer, to complement Batty and my preference was for one of Keedy or Dean Cosker, so I can hardly complain. Indeed I do think Keedy will do a fine job in keeping the run rate down and picking up regular wickets, even if the signing is perhaps a year or two late to be ideal.

Though Keedy is a high quality player there is a lingering concern in the back of my mind that we have now signed two players the wrong side of 35 who struggled to make it into the starting XIs of teams that were relegated. Add to that a worry that with at least five players in a likely starting XI getting on in years we certainly don't pose the threat in the field that we once did. Keedy will be 40 by the time he sees out his Surrey contract.

Of course the logical response to that is that we are now a vastly more experienced squad. Solanki and Keedy have over 500 first class games between them which could prove invaluable. If they aren't the players they once were, they certainly have something to offer a squad in transition, to say the least.

But more than a concern about whether they will score runs or take wickets, I worry about what this says about the long term plans of Surrey County Cricket Club. The logic that Keedy will pass on some of his vast experience to the other left arm spinners at the club, Zafar Ansari and Freddie van den Bergh, is not without merit but I am of another school of opinion. I think the best way for Ansari and van den Bergh to become better spinners is to play as often as possible against top class players. I struggle to see how this is going to be possible with Batty and Keedy as first choice spinners.

What's more, at the end of the 2012 season we waved goodbye to two very worthy (and home grown, and young) batsmen in Tom Lancefield and Matthew Spriegel who had barely been picked to play a single first class game over the preceding two years. All the while replacing them with a 36 year old veteran who averaged 23 in Championship cricket in 2012. It's not that I don't think Keedy or Solanki will be successful, I'm just not sure that we're setting ourselves on the best long term footing.

I can't help thinking that two years hence we'll be scouring the 'out of contract' lists for three or four more ready made players when we could have been building for the future. Great teams are rarely bought but are forged over time. Perhaps in the age of the desire for instant success that's a naive position to take, and I sincerely hope I'm proved wrong in all of my assertions above. There will still be more signings I'm sure, an overseas batsman and perhaps one other batting option, which may give us a better balanced squad age-wise.