Thursday 4 April 2019 13:12, UK
Fixtures for the 2019 County Championship and Royal London One-Day Cup have been released with County champions Surrey set to begin their title defence at home to 2017 winners Essex at The Kia Oval on April 11.
Rory Burns' side were dominant last season, winning 10 of their 14 matches and were on the brink of going the summer unbeaten before falling to a narrow defeat in their last match of the campaign - at home to Essex.
The Championship season gets underway on April 5 with newly-promoted Kent travelling to Taunton to face Somerset, while Nottinghamshire host Yorkshire and Essex face Hampshire at the Ageas Bowl.
Division Two champions Warwickshire start life back in Division One with a home game against Kent at Edgbaston on April 11.
In Division Two, Lancashire and Worcestershire must wait until the second week of the season to get their campaigns up and running and start with away fixtures to Middlesex and Leicestershire, respectively, as they bid to return to the top flight at the first attempt.
Jason Gillespie's Sussex just missed out on promotion in 2018 but a repeat of their third-placed finish would see them promoted with Division One due to be expanded for the 2020 season, and they welcome Leicestershire to Hove for their season opener on April 5.
The final round of matches in both divisions start on Monday, September 23 with Surrey hosting Nottinghamshire and last year's second and third-placed sides, Somerset and Essex, meeting at Taunton.
The One-Day Cup kicks-off on April 17 with a repeat of last year's final as holders Hampshire make the trip to Canterbury to play Kent in a floodlit match and the first Roses clash of the summer is four days later as Lancashire head across the Pennines to face Yorkshire at Headingley.
The final of the competition will take place at Lord's on May 25.
Opening fixtures - April 5
Hampshire v Essex
Nottinghamshire v Yorkshire
Somerset v Kent
Final round of fixtures - September 23
Kent v Hampshire
Somerset v Essex
Surrey v Nottinghamshire
Warwickshire v Yorkshire
Opening fixtures - April 5
Derbyshire v Durham
Northamptonshire v Middlesex
Sussex v Leicestershire
Final round of fixtures - September 23
Durham v Glamorgan
Gloucestershire v Northamptonshire
Leicestershire v Lancashire
Middlesex v Derbyshire
Sussex v Worcestershire
Opening fixtures - April 17
Durham v Northamptonshire
Glamorgan v Essex
Gloucestershire v Surrey
Kent v Hampshire (day-night)
Lancashire v Worcestershire
Yorkshire v Leicestershire
Quarter-finals - May 10
Semi-finals - May 12
Final - May 25
Opening fixtures - July 18
Notts vs Worcs
Middlesex vs Essex
Glamorgan vs Somerset
Final round of group games - August 30
Glamorgan vs Hampshire
Notts vs Durham
Lancashire vs Leicestershire
Somerset vs Middlesex
Sussex vs Gloucestershire
Birmingham vs Yorkshire
Essex vs Kent
Northants vs Worcestershire
Quarter-finals - September 4-7 (one each day)
Finals Day (Edgbaston) - September 21 (two semi-finals and final)
Opening fixtures - August 6
Yorkshire Diamonds vs Surrey Stars
Loughborough Lightning vs Western Storm
Lancashire Thunder vs Southern Vipers
Final round of group games - August 28
Lancashire Thunder vs Surrey Stars
Southern Vipers vs Loughborough Lightning
Western Storm vs Yorkshire Diamonds
Finals Day (Hove) - September 1 (one semi-final and final)
Watch county cricket, plus women's cricket, the Ashes and the World Cup, exclusively live on Sky Sports Cricket in 2019.
