England star bounces back with century in County Championship after disastrous Ashes

Out-of-form England wicketkeeper Jamie Smith silenced a few critics after scoring an outstanding 132 for Surrey in their opening games of the 2026 Rothesay County Championship against Warwickshire at Edgbaston on Monday, April 6.

Smith had a subpar Ashes campaign in Australia, where he scored 211 runs at an average of 23.44 with just one half-century to his name. With his struggles lower down the order, there have been serious question marks surrounding his place in the England Test side for a three-match series at home against New Zealand. 

Smith, however, showed his prowess by scoring his 13th First-Class hundred against Warwickshire in the second innings. Coming in to bat at number three for Surrey, the 25-year-old took his time and batted his side out of trouble to end up with 132 from 261, a knock not synonymous with England under their ‘Bazball’ regime. He was partnered brilliantly by all-rounder Dan Lawrence. Yet another batter fighting for a place back in the Three Lions’ setup, Lawrence scored an unbeaten 161 to help Surrey secure a draw in Birmingham. 

It was vitally important for Smith to get a few runs under his belt in the opening round of the new County Championship season. Somerset’s James Rew, who is being touted as a potential wicketkeeping replacement for Smith in the England side, scored 64 and 122 against defending champions Nottinghamshire. The 22-year-old already has 12 First-Class hundreds to his name.

In other players fighting to keep their place in the Test side, Zak Crawley did not make a compelling case for himself. The right-handed batter scored just nine and 20 for Kent in their game against Durham in Division Two.

England’s Test side needs changes ahead of the summer, where they face New Zealand and Pakistan in the longest format of the game. The Three Lions are currently seventh in the 2025-27 ICC World Test Championship, only above the West Indies and Bangladesh.