At the start of 2011, Cross was the only wicket-keeper with a first-team contract at Lancashire. The club had a small squad, just 19 players at the start of the season and choosing to place their trust in young local players, which led some pundits to declare that Lancashire would be fighting to avoid relegation form the County Championship. Speaking in March of his aims for the coming season, Cross stated that "if I got below 700 runs from No.7, I'd be really disappointed". During a match against Sussex in April 2011, Cross beat his highest score in first-class cricket. His innings of 125 came from 195 balls. During a match against Nottinghamshire in June, Cross reached the landmark of 1,000 first-class runs in his career. In the last match of the season, Lancashire won the County Championship first the first time since 1950 when they shared the title. Cross played in all 16 of Lancashire's County Championship matches, scoring 557 runs, taking 46 catches, and effecting 10 stumpings.