Opposition One To Watch: Leicestershire

15 Apr 2016 | Cricket
Leicestershire have packed their team with experienced batsman with County Championship pedigree, and former Essex captain Mark Pettini could be crucial to the visitors\' hopes.

Pettini, 32, is now an exprienced hand in county cricket, having played every season since 2001 for Essex.

He is joined in the Leicestershire squad by fellow old heads Neil Dexter, Paul Horton and Mark Cosgrove and could help anchor a team that has previously been lacking top order steel. Leicestershire have finished bottom of the pile in Division Two for three successive seasons and have recruited sensibly over the winter.

The former Essex batsman has amassed nearly 8,000 career runs from 155 matches at an average of 36 and hit a high score of 208* versus Derbyshire in 2006.

He stuck around for 202 minutes and 118 balls when making 45 against Loughborough MCCU last week and could prove a hard nut to crack for Glamorgan's bowlers starting on Sunday.

Pettini graduated from Cardiff University and returns to South Wales for his first competitve match for his new county on Sunday.

Leicestershire's New Batting Recruits

Mark Pettini – Age: 32, First-Class Matches: 155, Runs: 7,936

Paul Horton – Age: 33, First-Class Matches: 164, Runs: 9,522

Neil DexterAge: 31, First-Class Matches: 117, Runs: 6,032