Ronnie Irani wants a fighting performance from his Essex troops as he leads them into action against Nottinghamshire today.

"There is plenty of quality in the ranks but I want the players to display the hunger and desire to go with it," he said.

"That was something lacking in several games last season. I want total commitment to go hand in hand with the natural talent we possess.

"If we can produce that on a consistent basis, then I am confident about us getting promotion."

Irani takes over the reigns of captaincy from Nasser Hussain, the pair having come to an agreement at the start of the season that he will lead the county in four-day games.

This decision was reached on the grounds that Hussain will be unavailable for Essex duty for most of the summer because he will be skippering England.

"It is a challenge I am looking forward to," said Irani. "I can promise everyone they will get a fair crack of the whip.

"No one can regard himself as a permanent fixture in the side. Players will be selected on merit and not reputation."

Irani, generally acknowledged as a man not lacking in desire and enthusiasm, will no doubt remind his teammates what happened when Essex met Notts last September to send them into action with a smile on their faces.

Then the county put together their best performance of the summer when they thrashed today's visitors by 120 runs at Trent Bridge after being forced to follow on.

Paul Prichard and Hussain spearheaded that remarkable recovery with centuries in the second innings and paved the way for Irani and Mark Ilott to help demolish Notts in less than 42 overs.

Hussain is available for today's battle but final selection of the side was being delayed until a pitch inspection is made.

The team is expected to come from: Irani, Prichard, Hussain, S Law, Grayson, Peters, D Law, Robinson, Hyam, Cowan, Ilott, Anderson and Such.

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