Picture by Jack Rubio/Hampshire Cricket. Yorkshire’s players celebrate a wicket down at the Utilita Bowl over the weekend. More scenes like this would be ideal at North Marine Road.
Anthony McGrath has urged Yorkshire players to back up their impressive win over Hampshire at the weekend when they turn up at Scarborough to face Leicestershire, starting tomorrow (11am).
Head coach McGrath has spoken so much in the last few months about how he sees his White Rose side progressing, both in red and white-ball cricket.
Another step on that journey, believes the former all-rounder, is to follow one impressive performance with another.
“I said in the team review after the Hampshire game that it means nothing unless we turn up with a laser focus at Scarborough,” said McGrath.
“We’ve been here before when we’ve had great wins and then it took two days to wake up and by that time we’ve lost.
“So, my challenge to the lads was, ‘Enjoy the win and a couple of days off but what I want to see when we get to training on Wednesday at Scarborough is an absolute aggressive laser focus and a bit of arrogance when we go out onto that pitch’.
“We owe Leicester one from earlier this year because that was probably the most embarrassing game I’ve had as a coach in 10 years.
“I want us to be at Scarborough and be on it from ball one, seriously. That’s the challenge for us.”
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Anthony McGrath wants a win against Leicestershire for a number of reasons, including revenge for the June Grace Road reverse.
A win this week will all but eliminate any possibility of relegation.
Leicestershire head to Scarborough second from bottom in Division One and 17 points behind Yorkshire with five rounds remaining. Yorkshire are joint fifth in the table alongside Sussex.
Sandwiched in between are Essex and Surrey. The latter are only three points above the drop zone, and they are Yorkshire’s next but one opponents away at the Kia Oval, starting next Wednesday.
Looking at the relegation picture is certainly the glass half empty approach. The glass half full view is the title picture, and that’s where McGrath and his team are certainly looking now.
Yorkshire are 27 points behind leaders and champions Nottinghamshire, who are their final-round opponents at Trent Bridge late next month.
“There’s so many points left in there, and everyone plays everyone,” said McGrath.
“That’s why beating Hampshire was so important. We can start thinking, ‘What if?’ But, again, we’ve got to turn up with that attitude.
“We know what’s in front of us.
Picture by John Mallet/Leicestershire CCC. Jonny Bairstow suffered a thumb injury at Hampshire but is expected to be fit. Leicestershire captain Ben Green also missed his side’s last game.
“If we do turn up with this mentality and play well, we know we can beat anyone. But it’s having that for the next five weeks.”
Yorkshire will check on the fitness of captain Jonny Bairstow (thumb) and Jack White (hand) ahead of the fixture against a Foxes side who were also weekend winners.
They beat Glamorgan at home, making it two wins in their last three games.
The other was against Yorkshire at Grace Road in June, the game McGrath referenced earlier in this preview.
Captained by all-rounder Ben Green, they have New Zealanders Nick Kelly and Ajaz Patel as their overseas players. Green, however, did not play against Glamorgan because of a quad injury. Ian Holland deputised as skipper.
Jonny Tattersall played in that match and took the gloves following a concussion injury to Ben Cox in their Metro Bank One-Day Cup semi-final win over Nottinghamshire.
Yorkshire, meanwhile, will be without Kuldeep Yadav this week as he completes Test Match commitments with India in Sri Lanka. But he will return to the county in time to face Surrey next week, the first of three Championship appearances for the left-arm wrist spinner.
Note. “At Leicester” denotes Grace Road except where AR denotes Aylestone Road.
Results: County Championship: Played 171; Yorkshire won 85, Leicestershire won 17, Drawn 68, Tied 1. (Abandoned 2)
Non-Championship: Played 3; Yorkshire won 2 and Leicestershire won 1.
Scarborough: Played 10; Yorkshire won 5; Leicestershire won 0; drawn 5.
Note: In 1896 Leicestershire played in Scarborough’s first Championship match.
Most recent results: 2026 At Leicester, Yorkshire lost by an innings and 39 runs. 2024 At Headingley, match drawn. At Leicester, Yorkshire won by an innings and 72 runs.
Most successive wins: Yorkshire, 8 (1898-1901); Leicestershire have never had successive wins.
Two wins in a season: Yorkshire, 22 times, Leicestershire never achieved this, best is 2 wins in 3 games (1910-11 and 1974-76).
Highest totals: For Yorkshire, 660 at Leicester in 1896. For Leicestershire, 681-7dec at Bradford in 1996.
Lowest totals: For Yorkshire, 47, at Leicester (AR) in 1911. For Leicestershire, 34 at Headingley in 1906.
Highest individual score: For Yorkshire, 341 by GH Hirst at Leicester (AR) in 1905. For Leicestershire, 218 by JJ Whitaker at Bradford in 1996. Hirst’s innings is the highest for Yorkshire against any team.
Highest wicket partnerships: For Yorkshire, 329 for the fifth wicket between F Mitchell (194) & E Wainwright (153) at Leicester in 1899.
For Leicestershire, 270 for the fourth wicket between CS Dempster (146) & GS Watson (122) at Hull in 1937.
Best bowling figures (innings): For Yorkshire, 8-25 by GH Hirst at Hull in 1907. For Leicestershire, 9-63 by CT Spencer at Huddersfield in 1954.
Best bowling figures (match): For Yorkshire, 15-63 (8-25 and 7-38) by GH Hirst at Hull in 1907. For Leicestershire, 12-139 (8-85 and 4-54) by AD Pougher at Leicester in 1895.
Hat-tricks: For Yorkshire, 2 – by GH Hirst at Leicester in 1895 and at Hull in 1907. For Leicestershire, 1 – by PB Clift at Leicester in 1976.
Most dismissals in an innings by a wicket-keeper: For Yorkshire, 5 (all caught) by RJ Blakey at Harrogate in 1994. For Leicestershire, 6 (all caught) by RW Tolchard at Headingley in 1973 and 6 (all caught) by ND Burns at Leicester in 2001.
Most dismissals in a match by wicket-keeper: For Yorkshire, 7 by JG Binks (6 caught, 1 stumped) at Scarborough in 1963, by RJ Blakey (7 caught) at Harrogate in 1994. For Leicestershire, 9 by ND Burns (8 caught, 1 stumped) at Leicester in 2001; 8 by PA Nixon (all caught) at Sheffield (Abbeydale Park) in 1990.
Most catches in an innings by a fielder: For Yorkshire, 6 by EP Robinson at Bradford 1938; 5 by J Tunnicliffe at Headingley in 1897, at Leicester in 1900 and at Scarborough in 1901. Robinson’s 6 catches is the Yorkshire record against any team and was equalled by T Kohler-Cadmore against Kent in 2019. For Leicestershire, no instance of more than 4.
Most catches in match by a fielder: For Yorkshire, 7 by J Tunnicliffe at Headingley in 1897 and at Leicester in 1900 and by EP Robinson at Bradford in 1938; 6 by GG Macaulay at Bradford in 1933. For Leicestershire, 6 by GW Hillyard at Leicester in 1895.
Taking 7 catches in a match is a record for Yorkshire against any opponent and has been equalled by 3 others: AB Sellers in 1933, A Lyth in 2014 and T Kohler-Cadmore in 2019.
A century and 5 wickets in an innings in the same match: For Yorkshire, GH Hirst 107 and 5-67 and 1-46 at Leicester in 1896; FS Jackson 147 and 5-20 and 3-34 at Leicester in 1898, E Wainwright 153 and 1-16 and 6-44 at Leicester in 1899, CM Old 115* and 0 and 5-32 at Bradford 1975. No instance for Leicestershire.
At Scarborough …
Highest innings totals: Yorkshire 562 in 1901, Leicestershire 366 in 2005.
Lowest innings totals: Yorkshire 145 in 1958, Leicestershire 59 in 1896.
Highest individual score: For Yorkshire, 182 by JM Bairstow in 2012. For Leicestershire, 122 by MAG Boyce in 2012.
Best bowling figures (innings): For Yorkshire, 8-56 by WE Bowes in 1936. For Leicestershire, 6-48 by F Geeson in 1896.
Best bowling figures (match): For Yorkshire 13-96 (8-56 and 5-40) by WE Bowes in 1936. For Leicestershire, 10-109 (6-48 and 4-61) by F Geeson in 1896.
Compiled by Paul Dyson, Peter Horne & Martyn Webster – members of the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians.
