Natwest Pro40 is the latest derivative of the old Sunday League from sepia-toned years gone by. With the influence of the IPL and players prepared to make more risks to make their name heard, we are in for an exciting competition this season. Split into two divisions, there is some excellent value in backing teams outright.

Division One - The Last Crusade

Durham Dynamos
Gloucestershire Gladiators
Hampshire Hawks
Lancashire Lightning
Middlesex Crusaders
Nottinghamshire Outlaws
Somerset Sabres
Sussex Sharks
Worcestershire Royals

2007:

Winners: Worcestershire

Relegated: Warwickshire, Essex, Northamptonshire


Lancashire are stand-out favourites in this division, and the bookmakers must be having a field day being able to lay them at prices as low as 5.0. On paper, Lancashire look like a strong side, but in reality, we can't find a reason to back them at any price - they have been perennially under-priced this season despite under-performing badly in recent years. Stuart Law, Mal Loye and Lou Vincent are their big-name top order batsmen, but their middle order has flopped on many occasions so far this season and we can't help but get the feeling that their claims for the title are flimsy at best. They are likely to lose Andrew Flintoff through England duty for the bulk of rest of the season and they are more likely to get relegated than they are to win this competition.

Our first pick will be Middlesex - having won eight out of ten Twenty20 matches this season, they are on a hot streak and the key to this has been the success of their young batsmen. Dawid Malan looks to be one of the most impressive young batsman in the country, but he is not alone in the Middlesex team. Billy Godleman has been touted for future England honours on the back of a successful career with England under 19's, and Eoin Morgan has also impressed during this campaign. Together with experienced England batsmen Owais Shah and Ed Joyce, they have the perfect blend of youth and experience.

Their bowling has also proved to be a surprise hit. Arguably the shrewdest signing of the summer, South African Dirk Nannes picked up early wickets and stifled the opposition in the Twenty20 competition, with thirteen wickets @ 13.73. He has been backed up by spin twins who are perfectly suited to the shorter version of the game - Murali Kartik and Shaun Udal have the experience to choke the opposition during the middle overs and it is clear that the Crusaders have an excellent balance in all departments. We should not look too much into their failure to progress further in the Friends Provident Trophy - they were in a strong group and only missed out on qualification by a single point.

Everything points to Middlesex going far in this competition, yet they are touted as one of the rank outsiders and it even seems that the bookies expect them to be relegated! We are happy to agree to disagree, and we hope the Crusaders can make them pay for under-estimating one of the form teams in the country.
Elsewhere, we think that Durham could go far in this competition - like Middlesex, their team has great balance in all departments. England hopefuls Phil Mustard and Liam Plunkett will be hoping for recalls to the national side for the Champions Trophy in Pakistan , while Steve Harmison will have his eyes set on nailing down a place in the test side. Elsewhere, Dale Benkenstein and Michael di Venuto have been among the most prolific scorers in domestic cricket for a few years now, and should continue to prosper under the formers captaincy.

Gareth Breese has proved his worth as an off-spinning all-rounder this season, bowling tight spells and his confidence is surely sky-high after managing a last-ball six to seal a tie against Yorkshire in the Twenty20 Cup. But their star player is Albie Morkel - another South African, the big-hitting older brother of Morne is one of the most feared six-hitters in world cricket and he should relish this format of the game, where he may be given more time at the crease if Durham choose to promote him.

In terms of current form, Durham are in the quarter-finals of the Twenty20 Cup, they reached the semi-finals of the Friends Provident Trophy, and are in third place in County Championship Division One. They're not exactly under-rated with the bookies but we still feel that there's decent value to be had here.


Division Two - Eagles to Soar

Derbyshire Phantoms
Essex Eagles
Glamorgan Dragons
Kent Spitfires
Leicestershire Foxes
Northamptonshire Steelbacks
Surrey Brown Caps
Warwickshire Bears
Yorkshire Carnegie

2007:

Winners: Durham

Promoted: Middlesex, Somerset


Our picks for this division are fairly obvious, and we have no hesitations in siding with the two teams who have been stand-out performers so far this season. Both Essex and Kent have reached the finals of the Twenty20 Cup, and they also face each other in the final of the FTP. We have no reason to believe that they won't contest another 1-2 in the Pro40 competition.

For Essex , two innings tell the story of their season. Graham Napier has thrown his hat into the ring for next year's IPL and the Stanford 20/20 for 20 after his blistering 152 off just 58 balls against Sussex in the Twenty20 Cup. With sixteen sixes during an innings of flawless hitting, he will be looking to push on in this competition. This arguably overshadowed team-mate Ravi Bopara's breath-taking 201* against Leicestershire in the FTP, which was only the eighth double century in limited overs cricket in history.

Essex are well backed up in the bowling department, led by Pakistani leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, who is arguably the premier spinner in the tournament. Overall, Essex are an efficient unit and their team ethos should see them go far. However, their lack of bench strength is a minor concern and so we're looking elsewhere to the other form team in the division.

Kent have widely been touted as favourites and it's easy to see why. They have a fantastic all-round team led by Kolpak players Martin van Jaarsveld, Justin Kemp and Ryan McClaren. With an average of 120.4 in this year's FTP, van Jaarsveld is the top-scorer in the competition with 602 runs in eight innings, and has been the lynch pin of Kent 's batting this season. With four hundreds already in the FTP, the South African is having an immense season and we might be looking to back him as top-scorer in individual matches. Joe Denly has also impressed many with 388 runs @ 48.5, and the batting has an excellent balance to it with big-hitters such as Azhar Mahmood, Kemp and Yasir Arafat to back up the efforts of the top order.

The bowling is fronted by three experienced campaigners in Mahmood, Arafat and McClaren. Arafat has been particularly effective in the FTP, and he is the leading wicket-taker in the competition with twenty four wickets @ 14.29. Backed up by the likes of Simon Cook and James Tredwell, we can't pick holes in this Kent side. They are in form; they have both the leading run-scorer and leading wicket-taker in the FTP, and have been captained shrewdly by Rob Key.

NJ's Tips:

Durham to win Division One - 3pts (E/W, ¼, 1, 2, 3)  @ 6.5

Middlesex to win Division One - 5pts (E/W, ¼, 1, 2, 3) @ 13.0

Essex to win Division Two - 2pts (E/W, ¼, 1, 2, 3) @ 6.5

Kent to win Division Two - 5pts (E/W, ¼, 1, 2, 3) @ 6.0


The Natwest Pro40 gets under way on Tuesday 15th July with Worcestershire vs. Nottinghamshire, live on Sky Sports 1 from 4:40pm BST.