County Championship preview: Worcestershire

2009 in a nutshell A traumatic year in which they failed to win a Championship match and were relegated. Their one-day performances were better but many of their key performers have since disappeared. LV County Championship Division 1 9th (bottom) Pro 40 Division 1 3rd Friends Provident Trophy 3rd in Group A Twenty20 Cup 4th in the Midlands/Wales/West division What they'll be playing in this season LV County Championship Division 2 Clydesdale Bank 40 Group A Friends Provident Twenty20 – North Captain Vikram Solanki. Has emerged as an articulate senior citizen on the county circuit, immensely impressive as the PCA's chairman and as their temporary chief executive for much of this winter. And yet half of his team has fled from Worcestershire after a calamitous season, which is a puzzle. Coach Steve Rhodes. A Worcestershire stalwart since he moved down from Yorkshire in 1985. A little dour but utterly dedicated to the game. Yet in football he would have been sacked by now for "losing the dressing room", which is almost literally the case. Most of the best players (Moore, Batty, Davies, Jones and Kabir Ali) have gone to one or other of the wealthy clubs. Ins and outs In Ben Cox (YTH), Jack Shantry (YTH), Alan Richardson (Middlesex), Ben Scott (Middlesex, loan starting on 3 April for minimum of four weeks), James Cameron (UKP) Out Steven Davies (Surrey), Gareth Batty (Surrey), Simon Jones (Hampshire), Stephen Moore (Lancashire), Ian Fisher (rel), Mehraj Ahmed (rel), Josh Knappett (rel), Kabir Ali (Hampshire) Overseas Phil Jacques (Aus) for the first half of the season, Shakib al-Hasan (Bang) for the second. Steve Smith (Aus) for the Twenty20. The first Bangladeshi overseas player is eagerly awaited at New Road, especially since there is no convincing spinner on the staff until Shakib's arrival in mid-July. Key player Everyone likes going to Worcester – it remains a delightful county ground – but the club's finances and the quality of the playing staff have seldom been so fragile. More important than any one player, therefore, is to ensure they do not lose any more of the squad to wealthy rivals and no more games to flooding at New Road. Ashes factor Phil Jaques is probably the likeliest contender – for Australia. Moeen Ali, 22, is a gifted but relatively unfulfilled batsman, who might be elevated one day but not next winter. Prediction for 2010 Eighth in Division 2. They will struggle since they cannot afford to spend much money to replace all the absentees. There is unlikely to be any one-day silverware. At least Shakib may feel at home, battling away against superior opponents.