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Surrey set their sights on triple crown

In the wake of Surrey's emphatic Twenty20 Cup triumph at Trent Bridge, Adam Hollioake, the captain, has set his sights on a domestic treble of trophies

Wisden CricInfo staff
21-Jul-2003
In the wake of Surrey's emphatic Twenty20 Cup triumph at Trent Bridge, Adam Hollioake, the captain, has set his sights on a domestic treble of trophies.


Onwards and upwards: Surrey celebrate with the Twenty20 cup, and they're hungry for more

Even though the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy is out of the equation after their quarter-final loss to Derbyshire in June, Surrey are currently top of the County Championship and the National League, and they're in no mood to let any pretenders to their throne.
Surrey play Sussex, who lie five points behind them in the Championship, in a fortnight's time at Hove, and if Surrey win, it will all but mean trophy number two in the cabinet. And Hollioake knows his side's experience will hold them in good stead: "You'd have to say that, when we play Sussex, it's a big game. We've been in 20 of those in the last five years, which doesn't guarantee you a win, but it does at least give you an edge."
In the National League, Glamorgan and Gloucestershire are hot on their heels, but there is a steely confidence in this squad, who like to set their sights high. "We all got together at the beginning of the year and, without trying to be big-headed, we felt that if we could maintain our focus throughout the whole year, we seriously thought we could win all four." Hollioake said. "In other years we maybe thought we were a bit short in the one-day game, but this year we seriously thought we could do it.
"We were very disappointed to lose the game against Derbyshire but, now that we've got two trophies out of the way, we can focus on the Championship and the Sunday League. We know the other sides aren't going to hand it us and that we are going to have to play well."
In amongst their galaxy of stars, one of their less celebrated - but just as effective - internationals is Jimmy Ormond. Man of the final in the Twenty20 Cup with a match-winning burst of 4 for 11, Ormond has this season taken 40 first-class wickets, by far the most for Surrey. His efforts have not yet won him a recall to the England squad, but that doesn't bother his captain.
Hollioake said: "He used to try to swing the ball away a bit more, but now he runs in more Australian-style and hits the wicket hard, which has made him more consistent. We signed him because we thought he was the best young bowler in the country, by head and shoulders. Thankfully no one else seems to rate him as highly."
However, while Ormond is happy taking wickets for Surrey, he is hopeful of soon adding to his two Test caps: "I wouldn't be playing if I thought I didn't have a chance of playing for England. It can't hurt, can it?" And judging by his form this season, you can't disagree.