Adrian Harms
BBC Sussex

It's an overcast morning here in Hove, there's quite a lot of heavy cloud around with the odd patch of blue.

The forecast is for the odd shower today so let's hope it stays away.

There's a fairly strong breeze so hopefully if we do get any rain it blows across quite quickly.

We are good to go in eight of our nine games.

Let's play!

Image source, Getty Images

It's a Midlands derby this week at Edgbaston as Warwickshire and Worcestershire meet.

The Bears sit nicely in fifth, but the Pears' position at the bottom becomes increasingly precarious by the match.

The hosts sit 44 points above their visitors but have only won one more game all season, although they have proved harder to beat.

With the Kookaburra again in use, Warwicks may look to Aussie off-spinner Corey Rocchicioli to do some damage.

He's taken 12 wickets in the two previous matches with the ball from Down Under and he looks to understand its quirks better than most.

Image source, Rex Features

Having spent 10 years away from Division One you could have forgiven Sussex for taking some time to adjust to top-flight cricket but yet here they are in third place with the title by no means out of reach.

Now, a first Championship title since 2007 might be stretching things a little but it's fair to say they have surprised many with the way they have gone about things.

Led by John Simpson, wins over Somerset, Hampshire and Worcestershire have been impressive with a top-order which has looked solid while Australian seamer Gurinder Sandhu looks a smart signing.

Planning is also well underway for next season with the signing of Gloucestershire all-rounder Tom Price on a three-year contract.

As for Essex, well the eight-times county champions are in a bit of a pickle.

Just one win from their opening nine games and a poor T20 Blast campaign has got the Chelmsford members a little restless.

The return of head coach Chris Silverwood has failed to spark another challenge at the top-end of the table and they find themselves scrapping for survival instead.

Dean Elgar has, so far, not been able to repeat his run-filled summer of 2024 while Simon Harmer has not been the dominant force we have been used to over the past eight years.

These are tough times for Essex and they need to start winning soon...

Martin Emmerson
BBC Radio Newcastle

The toss is now scheduled to take place at 10.45am and play is set to begin at 11.15am. We have had a delay because of a heavy shower earlier and the forecast suggests we could be dodging a few more throughout the day.

It will be interesting to see which two overseas players Durham go with this week. David Bedingham and Codi Yusuf have returned from international duty with South Africa. Yusuf has signed a new short-term contract until September.

But former New Zealand bowler Neil Wagner is also here. He managed part of one game for Durham last season. That was against Notts but he injured his shoulder during it and that was that.

Image source, Rex Features

It is 15 years since Nottinghamshire lifted their last county championship title and a fair bit of water has passed under the bridge since then including relegation to Division Two from which they returned in 2022.

Could this be their year? Four wins and one defeat from their nine games has them just one point behind the leaders Surrey going into their trip south.

With skipper Haseeb Hameed and Ben Slater second and third respectively in the top run-scorers chart they have been able to post imposing totals to pressurise opponents and will look to do the same against a fragile Hampshire.

Having squeaked into the T20 Blast quarter-finals, Hampshire have work to do to secure their First Division status having been more accustomed to challenging at the top end in recent years.

In Kyle Abott they have the country's leading wicket-taker but an under-performing top order has left them vulnerable.

Image source, Rex Features

An intriguing clash between table toppers Surrey and a newly resurgent Yorkshire at North Marine Road, Scarborough, looks one of the picks of the Division One fixtures.

Surrey, who lead Notts by just one point, scored a monumental 820-9 declared (the highest score for 18 years) but it did not produce a win with Durham (following on) holding out for a draw.

Yorkshire backed up a draw with Notts with a 10 wicket win over Essex at York to post only a second win of a disappointing campaign so far.

Their opening bowlers, Jack White and Ben Coad took 12 wickets in the match which suggests Yorkshire may be a handful up front.

This could be closer than you might think.

Division One

Utilita Bowl: Hampshire v Nottinghamshire

Hampshire won the toss and decided to field

Taunton: Somerset v Durham

Match delayed - start at 11:15 BST

Hove: Sussex v Essex

Essex won the toss and decided to field

Edgbaston: Warwickshire v Worcestershire

Worcestershire won the toss and decided to bat

Scarborough: Yorkshire v Surrey

Yorkshire won the toss and decided to bat

Division Two

Derby: Derbyshire v Leicestershire

Leicestershire won the toss and decided to bat

Cardiff: Glamorgan v Kent

Glamorgan won the toss and decided to field

Cheltenham: Gloucestershire v Lancashire

Lancashire won the toss and decided to bat

Northwood: Middlesex v Northamptonshire

Northants won the toss and decided to field

BBC Local Radio

As well as listening to our local radio commentaries via this page, you can also tune in on most smart speakers.

Simply ask BBC Sounds to play the fixture of your choice, for example say 'ask BBC Sounds to play Sussex v Essex day one'.

To the collective groans of bowlers up and down the country and perhaps even a few spectators as well, the Kookaburra season/experiment continues for a third round of county championship matches.

Quite why county bowlers are being tasked with making a ball designed for abrasive surfaces in Australia in dampened midsummer conditions in England is down to higher powers and bigger pictures.

And while it may or may not better prepare players for overseas tasks like winning Ashes (which seems doubtful given that the England players are playing India with a Duke’s ball) we are where we with a batters dream scenario.

Of the 18 games which have took place in the last two rounds with the machine made ball just five were results with Surrey, Yorkshire, Northants, Middlesex and Lancashire winning matches.

The remaining 13 games saw plenty of runs (there were 59 centuries and Surrey made 820 in one innings which was the highest score for 18 years), as many stifled yawns and 13 draws.

Who knows what will happen now the bowlers have had two rounds and more downtime with which to get their Kookaburra’s singing? The best guess is more draws but let’s keep our fingers crossed and hope for the opposite.

Image source, BBC Sport

Surrey and Nottinghamshire have put themselves in pole position to slug it out for the title with the former looking to make it four wins in a row.

In their first season back in the top flight Sussex are also in the picture along with perennial bridesmaids, Somerset.

Worcestershire and Essex will look to make up ground on those above them with the Pears involved in a midlands derby against a Warwickshire side who could also yet mount a late challenge for honours.

In Division Two there can't be many who had Leicestershire and Derbyshire down as the top two at this stage of the season and they meet at Derby.

Glamorgan can also improve their own case for promotion as they host the bottom side, Kent.

Image source, BBC Sport

Image source, Rex Features

Good morning!

Hands up if you threw the curtains open first thing this morning just to check the skies?

Well after a soaking few days of English summer weather we should get plenty of cricket today.

We've got ourselves a title race in Division One although Surrey are still on for four-in-a-row unless the likes of Nottinghamshire and Sussex in particular can put the brakes on them.

In Division Two it's second against first as Derbyshire host Leicestershire - an unlikely top two?

Anyway, off we go...