Joe Clarke ready to head back to old stomping ground

Ahead of his return to New Road for the first time since his switch to Nottinghamshire, batsman Joe Clarke has conceded he is uncertain over how he will be received by Worcestershire supporters.

The 22-year-old travels to his old club in the Royal London One-Day Cup on Wednesday having turned down an offer to stay at Worcestershire in favour of a move to Trent Bridge.

One of a quartet to switch clubs for pastures new, Clarke revealed he had spoken with teammate Ben Slater about his return to Derbyshire in an Outlaws kit.

“I guess it will be weird for me. I asked Ben Slater if it was weird going back to Derbyshire and he said it wasn’t as weird as he thought it was going to be, so hopefully it will be similar for me and we get the right result,” he told Nottinghamshire Live.

“I’m not sure what kind of reception I’ll get. Hopefully it’s a good one, or at least an even one, but I hope I can put on a score and help Notts win.”

Notts are on target to reach the semi-finals of the competition, boasting the only perfect record in the country with five wins from five.

Central to that has been the form of Clarke, who has translated his form in the County Championship to the 50-over game.

“In terms of the batting, everyone has been on fire. Everyone has chipped in at the right times,” Clarke said.

“Myself and Stats (Slater) or Nashy (Chris Nash) have got us off to some flyers and that helps. The bowlers, they’ve shown they’re world class.

“It’s been five genuine team performances, so we’re going well and hopefully we can carry on that momentum.

Clarke has followed up scores of 112 and 97* on debut for his new county with a hundred and half-century in the One-Day Cup.