The County Championship season gets underway on Friday, bringing with it a sense of excitement and renewal after Rob Key's recent pledge to repair the broken relationship between the England team and the domestic game. Since Key's comments, ESPNcricinfo has surveyed a number of senior players within county cricket to gather their perspectives ahead of the new season.

Is the standard of Championship cricket higher or lower than it was a decade ago?

Ryan Higgins, Middlesex allrounder: There's a lot more professionalism now than there was 10 years ago. There are two overseas players in a lot of the teams you play against - not every single one, but I'd say in general the standard has gone higher.

Olly Hannon-Dalby, Warwickshire seamer and PCA chair: Invariably in any sport, people think it was better 50 years ago when they played. It's unfair to compare eras. All I can say is that it's a very good standard… I know when I play that if I'm not on it, I'll get whacked everywhere.

Lewis Gregory, Somerset allrounder and captain: Oh God. The standard is probably higher… But it's a tough one. I think of the greats that I started with, playing with and against, and the team that I came into here as an 18 or 19-year-old was ridiculous. But it's definitely a different game. The four-day game has changed a lot in terms of how it's played.

John Simpson, Sussex wicketkeeper and club captain: It's very different. When I joined Middlesex in 2008, Lord's was flat. It was just a one-innings-a-side game, where you'd get 600, the opposition get 550, and you shake hands at tea on the fourth day. The depth is a lot stronger now, and I would say guys are a lot more attacking and positive-thinking, rather than that negative [approach] and drawing games.

Sam Northeast, Kent batter: 10 years ago, the balls were doing a lot and the pitches weren't brilliant… But when the Kolpak signings were around, it was a high standard and there was real quality, so I guess it isn't currently as good as it was back then.

Matt Critchley, Essex allrounder: I was in Division Two then with Derbyshire, and when you're young, you think everything's unbelievable. But coming here, I've been in Division One for four or five years, and it's a good standard. Overseas Test players come over and they don't dominate it, which you'd think they would if it was that bad.

What has been the biggest change in the county game since you started playing?

Simpson: Mindset. There's just a shift… Gearing guys up to get big scores in quicker time. Back in the day, guys would want to try to bat for five or six sessions to win the game, or to set up a game so they can't lose, rather than looking at: how do we win the game? This is a very different mindset now, from when I first started.

Gregory: We used to play on better surfaces. There was more pace and bounce in the wickets then than there are now, for whatever reason. I'm not a groundsman, but now it is very much like the surfaces are either very batter-friendly or very bowler-friendly, and it's been a bit harder to find a balance between the two.

Higgins: Franchise cricket. When I started, everyone's main goal was to get into the first-class team. Now, it's like, 'How do I get into the Hundred?' I think it's a great change as well, because that's the way cricket is going - towards the short formats.

Hannon-Dalby: The way the women's game has grown. I saw a video the other day from the PCA where Kate Cross said her first professional contract with England was £7,000. Now, domestically, you can earn a good living, and girls in the Hundred can earn really, really good money and play a brilliant standard of cricket. It's a great product.

How would you describe the relationship between county cricket and the England team over the last four years?

Hannon-Dalby: Anyone in the county game wants to see the England team do well. By Rob Key's own admission, it's appeared like there's been a bit of disconnect there. It's music to all of our ears that he's said they are going to try and remedy that… It probably did seem a little bit like a closed shop. What we've all heard from Rob is that maybe that's changing, and that's fantastic.

Gregory: There has been a feeling over the last few years that it's, 'We're going to pick who we want.' That's ultimately their choice. They can do what they want, and that's fine… All people want is if you do well in county cricket, having a fair chance at representing your country because of that.

Critchley: It's potentially not been as valued as it might have been in the past. But at the same time, they're still picking the players that they think are the best in the country. You do want to see people who have stood out - like Jordan [Cox] for us - getting their opportunity… When England were playing well, no-one was that bothered.

Higgins: There has been a slight gap, but I do think to play international cricket, there has to be some basis that selectors pick on, and that's not always going to be based on someone getting 50 wickets or 1,000 runs in a season. I see it from both sides.

Northeast: Selecting for England is tough, because you have to try and guess if the production in county cricket is going to work at that next level, and they probably haven't got the credit [they deserve] for picking the likes of [Jacob] Bethell, who is a bit of a standout. You can't say that's been the wrong decision at all, but it does feel like there is a bit of a disconnect.

Do you and your team-mates feel like a good start to the season could put you in contention for England selection?

Hannon-Dalby: 100 percent, and that's exactly the way it should be. There's always going to be those bolters: Bethell is a great example of that. They pulled him out of obscurity, really, and he has obviously done brilliantly. But there has to be a door open there that if you do well, then you can get in.

Higgins: I still believe if you've got the right attributes to play international cricket, it's there for you. If you're a good enough player, you'll get there.

Simpson: Absolutely. It doesn't matter whether it's me at 37, or some of the younger lads here at 19, 20 or 21: you want to be performing as well as you can for your county to put yourself in the frame to play Test match cricket for England… All I've encouraged the lads [to do] since moving down here is to put bums on seats, go and win games for Sussex, and if you do that, that's going to put you in the shop window.

Northeast: It does feel like a little bit of a clean slate. Every time there's an Ashes series, it feels like there's a next chapter. It's the next period where you're building up for that, and that's the reality - like building up for a World Cup in football. There's a bit of a fresh start… There'll be people on their radar but if you do knock down the door, you'll definitely be in contention.

Critchley: Some people have to do well and they get picked, and some people have to do outstandingly to get picked… If you put a run together that is out of this world, then you put your name in the hat. But ultimately, if you bat at No.4 and you score six hundreds in a row, you're not going to replace Joe Root, England's best batter. Harry Brook's the same, and Ben Stokes is one of the best players we've ever had, so realistically, as a middle-order batter, you can only do as well as you can do.

Are you happy to see the back of the Kookaburra ball trial?

Gregory: Yep.

Hannon-Dalby: Certainly as a grumpy seam bowler, it didn't offer me much personally, so I'm happy to see it go. For a variety of different reasons, it led to some pretty dull cricket in this country. I totally get the experiment. I understand what it was about. But some of those games turned into pretty turgid affairs - and I wasn't watching, I was on the field. I can only imagine, from the stands, how un-entertaining they appeared.

Northeast: I'm definitely not! I don't think people ever really got their head around it, and I don't think [using it at] the start of the year worked. We really embraced it at Glamorgan, because we had two good spinners in Kellers [Ben Kellaway] and Mason [Crane], and seamers who liked to reverse it… It was basically to bring spinners into the game, and we had two very good ones.

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Higgins: Weirdly, I didn't have too bad a time with the Kookaburra ball on the bowling side. It was weird: I thought it was going to destroy all slow bowlers, but you just had to innovate a bit more. You're still playing the same game. But I am happy to get rid of it, to be honest. I don't think it's made any different to international cricketers. They don't play with it, and we're not going to play Test match cricket in England with the Kookaburra, so let's just stick to the Dukes.

Critchley: At first, I think it did what they wanted: they wanted games to last longer, and maybe to identify different sorts of bowlers. But then, because people got so many runs, it wasn't what they wanted any more! Personally, I bowled more overs with a Kookaburra, and I definitely got one five-for that I might not have had the opportunity to take. You look at someone like Sam Cook, who the trial might have been designed to find out: he took a 10-for, so the most skilful bowlers remain the most skilful bowlers.

Simpson: It was a nice experiment, but everyone's now ready to go back to what we've always known and used. I guess from Rob Key's perspective, [the Dukes ball] brings the dibbly-dobblers back into the game, but that's the nature of English conditions, isn't it? When guys are bowling 75mph, the realisation is they have to be very, very skilful… We want 85-90mph bowlers, but we also have to have a schedule that allows those guys to produce that on a week-in, week-out standard.

What do you make of the player replacement trial?

Higgins: I think it's great. Honestly, it should have been done so long ago. The life events one is great. People underestimate how important it is.

Hannon-Dalby: There have been some pretty awful examples of things happening in people's personal lives - accidents to partners, childbirths and whatnot - and players not being able to exit the game while something pretty serious is going on. Purely on that point of view, I think it's a great step forward, and that the game is looking after people a little bit better.

Simpson: When I first came over, we played against Derbyshire and I remember Mickey Arthur coming over to Paul Farbrace to say Blair Tickner's wife had been diagnosed with leukaemia. Mickey said, 'We've put this teamsheet in, but would Simmo be OK if he doesn't play and we put in a like-for-like bowler?' We were absolutely fine with that. There's a lot bigger things than a game of cricket. [Under previous regulations, Derbyshire were denied a replacement and Tickner completed the match.] If it's used in the right way and teams are not looking to bend the rules, then I think it's only good for the game.

Critchley: If it's a proper injury, then fine, but you don't want people to exploit that... Traditionally, you'd say no, but it does make sense.

Northeast: I'm all for experimenting with stuff like that. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work.

Other than your own club, which team looks strongest heading into the new season?

Hannon-Dalby: The champions last year were Notts, but Surrey always look strong, don't they? They look like an international line-up with bat and ball almost every year.

Simpson: There are some really strong sides this year… It's probably going to be one of the most competitive years for a very, very long time. Warwickshire, Somerset, Notts and Surrey will all be up there, but it's hard to pick a winner.

Gregory: It's hard to look past Surrey, unfortunately. There's got a lot of high-quality players, a lot of England players that are potentially going to be available at the start of the year, but they've got a lot of depth in a 25-30 man squad. Equally, two years ago, we went toe-to-toe with them for most of the year, and last year Notts came out on top, so they're clearly beatable, which is exciting.

Critchley: Derbyshire, obviously! I always want my old club to do well. They have strengthened well, with [Mohammed] Abbas in their attack. In Division One, you can't really look past Surrey. Notts are a very good team but they put together a season that you maybe didn't expect them to have. And the teams coming up also play a good brand of cricket, especially Leicestershire.

Northeast: I'd probably have to say Durham [in Division Two]. They've obviously just come down and have got good players up there, especially with some of the England boys around. It is going to be a good test up first for us.

Higgins: I always think Lancashire are strong. They have their own things with their pitch and stuff - it's tough to get results where they play. They're probably the strongest team but are not able to get the results that they want. Durham as well. Those, for me, are the two stronger teams [in Division Two].

Which team-mate are you backing to have a big 2026 season?

Critchley: It's a fairly obvious one, but Sam Cook. He's got the bit between his teeth. He's worked hard and he wants to get back in the England set-up and nail down a new-ball spot, which probably is available for a bowler like him.

Northeast: Matt Milnes coming back [from Yorkshire] is a huge one for us. He bowled unbelievably well in pre-season. He's going to lead the attack, and hopefully stays fit for the whole thing. He and Keith Dudgeon, our overseas, are going to be huge for us.

Simpson: Obviously, you're looking at James Coles, but Tom Haines is probably the other one. If you look at that England team, it's a very big talking point, the opening partnership. He's had a fantastic winter away with the Lions and started pre-season nicely.

Gregory: It's hard to look past James Rew. His white-ball cricket's come on a lot, so we might see a little bit of him in T20 as well. And I'm going to put a wild statement out there for a young lad: Alfie Ogborne's going to have a really good summer.

Hannon-Dalby: Michael Booth. He bowls with great pace and great skills, swings it both ways, and can bat as well down the order. He's almost like a young Chris Woakes. Keep your eye out for him.

Higgins: Three people: Joshua De Caires, Naavya Sharma and Seb Morgan will all have really big years. They're a lot further on than they were last year, and I think their time has come.

Which opposition player has impressed you over the past few seasons?

Simpson: George Hill at Yorkshire is an outstanding cricketer, and [Matthew] Revis. Michael Booth at Warwickshire bowls a heavy ball and has good skills. There's quite a lot at the older end: Haseeb Hameed, Adam Lyth, Sibbers [Dom Sibley]... We're blessed in abundance with such good cricketers around the country.

Northeast: I always thought Ajeet Singh Dale and Zaman Akhter were impressive at Gloucestershire - two guys who could potentially go to the top. I've been keeping an eye on them. Obviously they've both moved [to Lancashire and Essex respectively] but it'll be interesting to see what they do down the road.

Higgins: James Coles. It's easy to say after his Hundred deal, but he's an unbelievable player. He played a T20 knock against us at Lord's last year: it didn't look like he took a risk and he got 77. He was tactically so aware of what was going on - I was like, 'Isn't he, like, 20?' - and then he bowls handy left-arm spin and catches them.

Critchley: James Coles is a very good young player. And then there's the Rews at Somerset - both of them, but James has done very well in the last few years and I've seen more of him.

Gregory: I was going to say Colesy, but he's got too much money now! I spent the winter with him [at Sunrisers Eastern Cape]. I'm not surprised with the Hundred auction and what happened there. And who's the left-hand batter at Sussex? Tom Haines. I like him. I think he's a nice player.

Hannon-Dalby: It was just a little glimpse, but Thomas Rew down at Somerset. We played against him in the 50-over [competition] and he just played a few shots that made you go like, 'Oh, OK.' He clearly can play.