ELIZABETH BOTCHERBY takes a look at the Rockets' player recruitment and suggests what more needs to be done before the start of the new season
Who has been retained?
It’s all change at Trent Rockets with just five players set to pull on the yellow jersey for a second season at this stage of the recruitment process.
England trio Nat Sciver, Katherine Brunt and Sarah Glenn are the marquee retentions while Scotland allrounder Kathryn Bryce and wicketkeeper Abbey Freeborn have also survived the cull.
Who has been released?
Where to start? Overseas trio Rachel Priest, Sammy-Jo Johnson and Heather Graham, all of whom were ever-present in 2021, have packed their bags while Southern Vipers batter Emily Windsor has also been released at this stage.
Completing the departees are a host of Lucy Higham, Nancy Harman, Teresa Graves, Ella Claridge, Michaela Kirk, Alicia Presland – all of whom represented Lightning in 2021 – and Central Sparks spinner Georgia Davis.
Wholesale changes ahead for the Rockets.
There is the potential for lots of change at Trent Rockets in 2022
Which areas are well covered?
If this were five-a-side cricket, Trent Rockets would have a very good side, with three allrounders in Sciver, Bryce and Brunt, a leg-spinner and handy lower-order batter in Glenn, and Freeborn, who certainly has more to offer with the bat in 2022, with the gloves.
Sadly, as much as The Hundred is fairly free with the conventions of cricket, fielding 11 players remains the norm.
Their squad, at present, represents a good start. That’s it.
Which areas lack cover?
Sciver was left to carry her side with the bat in 2021, scoring 220 runs at a strike rate of 136.64 – the only player to score more than 140 runs. Their overseas signings were particularly disappointing with the bat – 76 of Priest’s 138 runs came in one innings while Johnson and Graham scored 245 runs combined.
Wickets, too, were in short supply, with Johnson (15) the only player to pick up more than six. The big problem with the bowling attack was it lacked quality depth, placing a huge burden on Sciver, Glenn and Brunt to deliver and instead they faltered, picking up just 13 wickets combined.
Looking ahead to the 2022 tournament, Trent Rockets need two new openers to replace Johnson and Priest, one of whom is ideally a specialist batter and the other a high-quality allrounder; a spinner to ease the workload on Glenn; and at least one specialist pace bowler to give their attack a similar appearance to the Farrant-Kapp-Ismail unit at Oval Invincibles.
It’s a long list but with a spot available in each of the top three salary bands, Trent Rockets can afford to splash the cash.
Squad: Katherine Brunt, Kathryn Bryce, Abbey Freeborn, Sarah Glenn, Nat Sciver
Overseas players: 0
Spaces to fill: 11
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