Essex Cricket compete across 5 competitions in the 2026 English domestic season, with both men’s and women’s teams featuring in the Vitality Blast, County Championship, Metro Bank One Day Cup, and various cup competitions. The Ambassador Cruise Line Ground in Chelmsford serves as the primary home venue for all Essex fixtures across formats.
Tom Westley captains the men’s team across all competitions, while Grace Scrivens leads the women’s side through their Tier 1 Vitality Blast, One Day Cup, and County Cup campaigns. Additionally, Chelmsford hosts England Women’s 1st T20I against India on May 28, adding an international fixture to the venue’s packed 2026 calendar.
Essex Men 2026 County Championship Fixtures
Essex Men compete in County Championship Division One for the 2026 season. The table below covers all 14 Championship matches.
| Date | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri Apr 3 – Mon Apr 6 | Hampshire | Essex | Utilita Bowl |
| Fri Apr 10 – Mon Apr 13 | Essex | Somerset | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri Apr 17 – Mon Apr 20 | Warwickshire | Essex | Edgbaston |
| Fri Apr 24 – Mon Apr 27 | Surrey | Essex | Kia Oval |
| Fri May 8 – Mon May 11 | Essex | Hampshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri May 15 – Mon May 18 | Essex | Leicestershire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri Jun 12 – Mon Jun 15 | Leicestershire | Essex | Uptonsteel Grace Road |
| Fri Jun 19 – Mon Jun 22 | Essex | Nottinghamshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Thu Aug 20 – Sun Aug 23 | Somerset | Essex | Cooper Associates County Ground |
| Thu Aug 27 – Sun Aug 30 | Essex | Surrey | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed Sep 2 – Sat Sep 5 | Essex | Sussex | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Tue Sep 8 – Fri Sep 11 | Yorkshire | Essex | Headingley |
| Tue Sep 15 – Fri Sep 18 | Essex | Warwickshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Thu Sep 24 – Sun Sep 27 | Glamorgan | Essex | Sophia Gardens |
Essex Men Vitality Blast 2026 Fixtures
Essex Men play in Group C (South Group) of the 2026 Vitality Blast. The table below covers all group-stage matches.
| Date | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, May 22 | Essex | Sussex Sharks | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Tue, May 26 | Hampshire Hawks | Essex | Utilita Bowl |
| Fri, May 29 | Kent Spitfires | Essex | St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury |
| Sun, May 31 | Essex | Derbyshire Falcons | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Sun, Jun 7 | Middlesex | Essex | Merchant Taylors’ School |
| Tue, Jun 9 | Essex | Kent Spitfires | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Jun 26 | Northants Steelbacks | Essex | County Ground, Northampton |
| Wed, Jul 1 | Essex | Surrey | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Jul 3 | Sussex Sharks | Essex | 1st Central County Ground, Hove |
| Sun, Jul 5 | Essex | Middlesex | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Jul 10 | Essex | Hampshire Hawks | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Sun, Jul 12 | Surrey | Essex | Kia Oval |
Essex Men Metro Bank One Day Cup 2026 Fixtures
Essex Men compete in the Metro Bank One Day Cup across August and September. The table below covers all confirmed fixtures.
| Date | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun, Aug 2 | Essex | Worcestershire Rapids | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Aug 7 | Glamorgan | Essex | Sophia Gardens |
| Sun, Aug 9 | Durham | Essex | Banks Homes Riverside |
| Tue, Aug 11 | Essex | Yorkshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Aug 14 | Metro Bank One Day Cup QF | TBC | TBC |
| Sat, Aug 16 | Metro Bank One Day Cup SF | TBC | TBC |
| Tue, Jul 21 | Middlesex | Essex | TBC |
| Sun, Jul 28 | Essex | Derbyshire Falcons | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed, Jul 29 | Sussex Sharks | Essex | Arundel |
| Fri, Jul 31 | Essex | Hampshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
Essex Women 2026 One Day Cup Fixtures
Essex Women compete in the Metro Bank Women’s One Day Cup. The table below covers all confirmed fixtures.
| Date | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Apr 11 | Hampshire | Essex Women | Utilita Bowl |
| Wed, Apr 15 | Durham | Essex Women | Banks Homes Riverside |
| Sat, Apr 18 | Essex Women | Warwickshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Sat, Apr 25 | Essex Women | The Blaze | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed, Apr 29 | Somerset | Essex Women | TBC |
| Sat, May 2 | Yorkshire | Essex Women | TBC |
| Wed, May 6 | Essex Women | Lancashire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed, May 13 | Surrey | Essex Women | Kia Oval |
| Sat, Jun 7 | Essex Women | Hampshire Hawks | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed, Jun 17 | Essex Women | Hampshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Sun, Jun 21 | Essex Women | TBC | Castle Park, Colchester |
| Tue, Jun 23 | Lancashire | Essex Women | Blackpool Cricket Club |
Essex Women Vitality Blast 2026 Fixtures
Essex Women play in Tier 1 (South Group) of the Women’s Vitality Blast 2026. The table below covers all group-stage matches.
| Date | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, May 22 | Essex Women | Warwickshire Bears | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Tue, May 26 | Hampshire Hawks | Essex Women | Utilita Bowl |
| Fri, May 29 | Yorkshire | Essex Women | Headingley |
| Sun, May 31 | Essex Women | Lancashire Thunder | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Jun 5 | Surrey | Essex Women | Kia Oval |
| Sun, Jun 7 | Essex Women | Hampshire Hawks | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Sun, Jun 28 | Essex Women | The Blaze | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed, Jul 1 | Warwickshire Bears | Essex Women | Edgbaston |
| Sun, Jul 5 | Essex Women | Surrey | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Tue, Jul 7 | Essex Women | Somerset | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Jul 10 | Durham | Essex Women | Banks Homes Riverside |
| Sun, Jul 12 | Somerset | Essex Women | Cooper Associates County Ground |
| Fri, Jul 17 | Vitality Blast Finals Day | TBC | Kia Oval |
Essex Women Additional Cup Fixtures
| Date | Competition | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun, Aug 19 | One Day Cup | Essex Women | Somerset | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Sun, Aug 23 | County Cup QF | TBC | TBC | TBC |
| Sat, Aug 29 | County Cup Finals Day | TBC | TBC | TBC |
| Thu, Sep 3 | One Day Cup | Warwickshire | Essex Women | TBC |
| Sun, Sep 6 | One Day Cup | Essex Women | Surrey | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Wed, Sep 9 | One Day Cup | Essex Women | Yorkshire | Ambassador Cruise Line Ground |
| Fri, Sep 11 | One Day Cup | The Blaze | Essex Women | Chesterfield |
| Wed, Sep 16 | One Day Cup SF | TBC | TBC | Utilita Bowl |
| Sat, Sep 19 | One Day Cup Final | TBC | TBC | Utilita Bowl |
Essex Cricket 2026 International Fixtures at Chelmsford
The Ambassador Cruise Line Ground hosts 1 international fixture during the 2026 season.
| Date | Teams | Competition | Time (Local / GMT / IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu, May 28 | England Women vs India Women | 1st T20I, India Women Tour of England | 6:30 PM / 5:30 PM / 11:00 PM |
Essex Men 2026 Squad
Tom Westley captains Essex Men across all formats for the 2026 season. The following list covers all contracted players.
Tom Westley (c), Dean Elgar, Robin Das, Charlie Allison, Jordan Cox (wk), Michael Pepper (wk), Paul Walter, Matt Critchley, Luc Benkenstein, Simon Harmer, Wiaan Mulder, Noah Thain, Sam Cook, James Porter, Shane Snater, Mackenzie Jones, Mitchell Killeen, Zaman Akhter, Charlie Bennett, Simon Fernandes
Essex Women 2026 Squad
Grace Scrivens captains Essex Women for the 2026 season. Australian leg-spinner Maddie Penna joins as the overseas player for the full Vitality Blast campaign after winning successive WBBL titles with Adelaide Strikers. Lauren Winfield-Hill strengthens the top order on loan from Yorkshire.
Grace Scrivens (c), Maddie Penna, Abtaha Maqsood, Amara Carr, Ariana Dowse, Cordelia Griffith, Esmae MacGregor, Eva Gray, Flo Miller, Jo Gardner, Jodi Grewcock, Kate Coppack, Liberty Heap, Lissy Macleod, Sophia Smale, Sophie Munro
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Essex Cricket 2026 Tickets
Fans can purchase tickets for all Essex home matches through the official Essex Cricket website at essexcricket.org.uk/tickets. Moreover, hospitality packages for the Ambassador Cruise Line Ground offer enhanced matchday experiences across all formats.
The Essex Men vs Hampshire Hawks Vitality Blast fixture on Friday July 10 doubles as a floodlit match at Chelmsford and has already sold out. Furthermore, Essex Women’s home fixture against The Blaze on Sunday June 28 aims to break the club’s women’s attendance record.
For the England Women vs India Women 1st T20I on May 28, fans can buy tickets through the ECB’s official ticketing portal at ecb.co.uk/tickets/england/women. Advance booking through the official website provides discounted rates compared to matchday prices across all competitions.
