The likes of Ian Bell, Joe Root and James Anderson may have win the plaudits on the international scene but the men who play week in and week out for their counties deserve recognition, too.
Selecting a county XI is fraught with mental anguish and especially when combining all three formats I've been tearing out what remains of my hair. It has been a mixed summer for overseas signings. OK, so the likes of Azhar Mahmood, Richard Levi and David Hussey sparkled briefly during the T20 tournament but there were no consistent performances amongst the recognised stars of Test cricket. Shiv Chanderpaul did his best to bolster Derbyshire's feeble middle-order and Ricky Ponting enjoyed a spectacular first-class swansong, averaging more than 123 in his six innings with Surrey. Had he been available for longer, I doubt the county would have been relegated - and he was signed only when Graeme Smith got injured early on.
South Africans Alviro Petersen and Hashim Amla shone at opposite ends of the season, and Simon Katich and Ashwell Prince did much to boost Lancashire's promotin campaign but Thilan Samaraweera accumulated a mere 702 Championship runs for Worcestershire, completely dominated by one of his less illustrious team-mates, of whom more later. Australians were always in the headlines this year but it was some without the green baggy who caught the eye in domestic cricket. So what about my county team of the year?
Opening batsmen didn't figure much in the runs or averages, with the honourable exception of Wayne Madsen. As skipper and leading run-scorer, he was unfortunate to win various individual awards whie his side tumbled straight back to Division Two. Aussie Michael Klinger arrived at Gloucestershire under the radar but he was brilliant in all formats, especially in one-dayers. Michael Carberry will be flying Down Under for the Ashes but only on the back of some useful T20 runs and scratchy ODI innings. His mediocre Championship contribution for Hamsphire let him down badly. Robert Key struck five hundreds for Kent but too often got out cheaply, not unlike Virun Chopra and Sam Robson. Chris Rogers might have made it to my team had his early season form for Middlesex not brought him into the Ashes squad.
There's some fierce competition, however, for middle-order places. The promotion up the order for Ned Eckersley and Scott Borthwick reaped pleasant surprises for Leicestershire and Durham, respectively in the Championship. James Vince starred for Hampshire ahead of Carberry, Adams and McKenzie, while Ed Joyce led the Sussex batting with style. However, two men are automatic choices: Moeen Ali and Gary Ballance. The former was denied a 'wild card' place in the winter tour party by the latter, but if anything the Worcestershire strokemaker was the outstanding batsman in the county season. He contributed more than 2000 runs in total and fifty-odd wickets, too. His spin bowling probably edges Samit Patel out of my side, but he shouldn't see a vendetta or fatt-ist attitude in my decision! Ballance finally came of age with Yorkshire, in the absence of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow, and could yet form an effective alliance with Root in the Test set-up.
All-rounders seemed to be oozing from the woodwork in 2013. Last year's Most Valuable Player, Peter Trego flayed attacks in the YB40 but failed to reproduce his first-class batting or bowling this time. However, three men force their way into my Eleven. James Allenby was one of the few genuine all-rounders who were superb with bat and ball throughout the summer and in all formats. It's a mystery to me why Glamorgan could finish no higher than eighth in Division Two when they boasted three of the best individual players in the competition. Alongside him stands 37 year-old Darren Stevens, better known for his one-day exploits but in 2013 was a towering batting presence for Kent in the four-day game. Ben Stokes remained a dangerous batsman but added near-90mph bowling to his CV, taking more than 50 first-class wickets for the champions Durham.
It wasn't a vintage season for wicketkeepers. James Foster was not his usual prolific self with the bat, and Chris Read had a disaster. Craig Kieswetter did OK for Somerset, especially in T20, but Steven Davies gets the nod, scoring more than 1500 runs along with tidy 'keeping for Surrey.
That leaves me just three places to complete the full compliment. Alan Richardson claimed more Championship wickets than almost anyone else - again - but two other masters of seam and swing beat him to my fantasy team. Graeme Onions was once more irresistable for Durham nabbing 70 wickets at under 19 apiece, yet is clearly too short at 6 feet 1 to make the England team. Crazy! Michael Hogan excelled for Glamorgan, heading the T20 wicket league and taking 67 Championship wickets at just over 20. Jeetan Patel was the best spinner of the summer and Sussex's Chris Jordan makes a compelling case for inclusion but my final pick is David Willey who seemed to epitomise Northamptonshire's new-found team spirit. His blistering batting and match-winning hat-trick won the county the T20 crown, and he wasn't bad in proper cricket, either. Oh, and being a left-armer clinches the deal.
In summary: Madsen (Derby, *), Klinger (Gloucs), Moeen Ali (Worcs), Ballance (Yorks), Stevens (Kent), Stokes (Durham), Allenby (GLamorgan), Davies (Surrey +), Willey (Northants), Hogan (Glamorgan), Onions (Durham). Subs; S Patel (Notts), J Patel (Warks)
