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In a chilly April match, Somerset's James Rew defies tradition by executing a stunning cover drive against Nottinghamshire. This shot, described as both dangerous and beautiful, exemplifies the allure and risks of cricket's most celebrated stroke.
Taunton, 3 April 2026. Somerset are hosting Nottinghamshire, the defending county champions, in their first fixture of the new season and are 20 for two having been sent into bat. Itâs murky and cold. The batters wear cable-knit sweaters and the spectators in the crowd have wisely decided not to eschew their winter coats. Plenty peer out at the action from under tightly drawn hoods.
The hulking Notts fast bowler Dillon Pennington steams in towards Somersetâs James Rew. The pitch is lush and only a shade less green than the uncut strips either side, more âShrekâs foreheadâ than âKermitâs bellyâ in cricketâs internationally recognised Pitch Greenness Scaleâą . By August it will be paler, baked and cracked â you guessed it, âYodaâs shinâ. For now, though, the conditions suggest everything is in the fielding sideâs favour. Rew taps his bat and blinks towards the bowler.
Cup an ear and you can just about hear the ghosts of old pros intoning on the chill breeze: âNever cover drive in April.â Those men of years past who relied on runs for their income knew that the shot wasnât worth the risk, especially not on treacherous springtime loam as yet unhardened by the sun. In years gone by the cover drive remained the flashy preserve of the gentleman player: a fine edge to the slips or keeper wouldnât cost them any sleep, or any money. The professional knew different. Put it away. Lock it up. A cover drive before the height of summer? Itâs not worth the risk.
No one told Rew. Pennington sends down a full ball just outside the line of off-stump and, in a split second, Rew springs to life, pouncing forward like some ruddy cheeked DâArtagnan, thrusting his rapier to drive the ball all along the ground to the boundary. Rew holds the pose as the ball bisects the fielders, just in case you were in any doubt as to the balance and poise he has just displayed.
âThe cover drive is not like other shots,â writes Jon Hotten. âIt is dangerous and beautiful. It is decadent and depraved. It is the purest expression of mastery in batsmanship and it is a destroyer of innings, of matches, of careers. It is addictive, compulsive, indulgent. It makes crowds go âaaaahhhâ. It makes coaches slam their fists into dressing room walls.â
Speaking of which, let us cast our minds back to lunchtime on day two of the first Ashes Test in Perth in November. England were 59 for one with a second innings lead of 99 when the curse of the cover drive struck. Ollie Pope and Harry Brook were both caught driving outside off-stump to Scott Boland before Joe Root was bowled attempting the same to Mitchell Starc. Root is a sumptuous cover driver but also, crucially, a discerning one. You donât chalk up nigh-on 14,000 Test runs by being reckless. His wicket was the gut punch. You kind of expect it from the rest, but not from him. Seeing Root get out in such a fashion was akin to witnessing the âsensible oneâ on the stag do dancing on the bar with his top off. And just after lunch too.
The cover drive is considered a dangerous yet beautiful shot that showcases a batsman's mastery, often leading to both spectacular runs and significant risks.
Cricketers typically avoid the cover drive in early season due to treacherous pitch conditions that can lead to easy dismissals.
James Rew is a Somerset batsman who executed a remarkable cover drive during a match against Nottinghamshire, defying conventional wisdom about playing the shot in April.
Early April cricket matches often feature murky, cold weather and lush, green pitches that can be challenging for batting.

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Harry Brook after his dismissal in Perth during the last Ashes. Photograph: Gary Day/AP
Englandâs compulsion to play the cover drive ultimately cost them the Test in Perth and proved a decisive passage in the whole series. Not that their batting coaches were left punching any walls, Marcus Trescothick later admitting the squad had had âno discussionsâ about driving on the up.
âThe percentages werenât in their favour to play the cover drive in Perth,â Nasser Hussain tells The Spin. âIt was zipping around and they were still driving on the up. Everyone knew England werenât for sitting in so Australia just held a line out there and played on the ego. England fell into the trap.â
The balance of risk and reward, the inherent dangerousness of the cover drive, are part of its appeal.
âItâs about deciding when to play it, but that is also true of most cricket shots, really,â says Hussain before he too seemingly falls under the spell of the cover drive. âThe reason I love to see it now as a pundit and why I loved playing it as a player is because it is so elegant, so aesthetically pleasing. Itâs a touch shot in a game that has gone heavily towards power.â

Joe Root on the drive for Yorkshire while James Rew keeps wicket. Photograph: Harry Trump/Getty Images
The cover drive is still seen as a touchstone, a marker of talent. If a player can cover drive and, almost as importantly, do so with style, then it elicits whispers of appreciation. WhatsApp messages are dispatched and social media clips shared. Hussain concurs, recalling that he saw the clip of Rew hitting his first four of the season in April and also one a few weeks later of him hitting the final delivery of a dayâs play against Hampshire for four. The shot? A cover drive. âWe all have our favourite cover drivers, be it a Joe Root, Babar Azam, Virat Kohli ⊠David Gower was always mine,â coos Hussain.
The shot itself is so often followed by a rumbling, appreciative purr from those watching. Zak Crawleyâs Exocet cover drive to the first ball of the 2023 Ashes series from Pat Cummins drew gasps from the crowd and even snorts of pleasure from the gnarled hacks looking on from the Edgbaston press box.
The man most likely to replace Crawley at the top of Englandâs batting card for the first Test of the summer is Rew. âThere is no other shot that exists on such an edge,â says Hotten of the cover drive. âAn edge from which some will fall one way and some fall the other.â Just like the game itself.