Tom Hartley dropped by Lancashire for their second County Championship fixture

In a recent development, Lancashire have decided to drop star England spinner Tom Hartley for their second County Championship encounter of the 2024 season. Nathan Lyon was retained in their XI against Hampshire, whereas Shoaib Bashir has been recalled back for Somerset after being sidelined in the opening round last week.

It is worth noting that, after England's recent five-match Test series in India, head coach Brendon McCullum underlined the importance of giving opportunities to players like Hartley and Bashir in the County, who impressed during their Test tour. Hartley's exclusion from the squad is particularly striking, considering Lancashire’s recent signing of Australia's premier spinner, Nathan Lyon, for the 2024 season.

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Notably, Hartley was selected alongside Lyon in Lancashire's rain-marred opening round against Surrey last week. The youngster managed to score an unbeaten 16 runs in Lancashire's only innings and also bowled a single over in Surrey's brief 8.3-over reply. Meanwhile, for the second round at the Utilita Bowl, Lyon will be the sole specialist spinner in Lancashire's XI. 

Shoaib Bashir, who was omitted from Somerset's XI against Kent last week, has been recalled for their upcoming match against Surrey at The Oval. Somerset have faced severe criticism after they benched Bashir out of the opening round, despite the absence of Jack Leach due to ongoing recovery from knee surgery. Notably, the club revealed the signing of  South African seamer Migael Pretorius but hinted that Bashir will feature in the lineup when they face Surrey.

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"He would have been handy today. We made a decision to go with an extra seamer… I'm not sure it would have made a huge amount of difference but yeah, he definitely would have been nice to have," Lewis Gregory, Somerset's captain, said of Bashir after the final day of their rain-marred draw against Kent.

"We'll look to see what the wicket is [like]. He's obviously a highly skilful bowler and if we're playing more of a full game - which, with the weather, it looks pretty good - I imagine we'll see him in the side," Gregory added.