My Hundred: from 60 to 51

 60: Chris Gayle

After Brian Lara retired, I hoped Chris Gayle would continue the tradition of Caribbean cavaliers and attract young West Indians to the sport. It didn’t quite happen that way. Instead, Gayle’s nonchalant brilliance in Twenty20 diverted his attention away from real cricket towards the lucrative franchise league circuit. Of course he was fabulous to watch, swinging sixes with apparent ease, and I’d have placed him much higher had he not treated his Somerset contract several years ago with such apparent arrogance. A twenty-first century sporting icon nonetheless. 

59: Jos Buttler

In my biased opinion, Jos blotted his copybook after being allowed to leave Somerset for Lancashire. Not his fault, I know. He came up through the county ranks as a blazing wicketkeeper-batsman and I had a lot of respect for the teenager’s attitude to the game and spectators when I saw him play at Taunton. I didn’t foresee Jos becoming one of the finest one-day improvisers in the world, though. A frequent match-winner for England in ODIs boasting a strike rate of 120, the third highest on record, leaving the West Country certainly didn’t hold back his limited-overs career. 

58: Glen Chapple

Surely one of the greatest redheads never to play Test cricket for England, Chapple was an extremely consistent seam bowler, late-order batsman and captain for Lancashire, leading them to the Championship crown aged 37. He was granted a consolation ODI against Ireland in 2006, during which he was injured, so that was that. I was at Lord’s in ’96 when he took 6-18 to destroy Essex in the Nat West Trophy Final. Nearly two decades later I was willing him to remain fit enough to reach the 1000-wicket milestone in first-class cricket but he retired, stranded on 985. 

57: Ricky Ponting

Not the most popular of characters in England but then Aussie captains are never at the top of the Barmy Army’s Christmas card list. A more attacking batsman than Steve Waugh or Allan Border, he accumulated runs for fun in a twenty-year career, leading his country to huge success in Tests and World Cups. Hardly a loveable character, ‘Punter’ nevertheless appealed to me on various levels, notably his reluctance to go down the Twenty 20 pre-retirement route. Instead his final fixtures were for Surrey in the Championship and it seemed to me a noble way to bow out. 

56: Mushtaq Ahmed

The roly-poly leg-spinner, only 5 foot 4, is arguably the most successful spinner in the county game since Derek Underwood. ‘Mushie’ was not the best of Pakistan’s world-class crop of spinners in the Nineties but he proved a giant of the County Championship over many years. I saw him twirl for Somerset back in the 1990s but it was at Sussex in 2006 and 2007 where he took a hundred wickets twice in succession, winning titles in the process. Few players are so popular wherever he plays or, as in recent years, coaches. 

55: John Lever

Google him and you’ll probably find an association with Vaseline, like Mike Atherton’s pocketfuls of dirt. However, John Lever spent 22 years at Essex, taking more than 2,000 wickets for the county. His fast-medium swing was rarely appreciated by England selectors but JK’s wickets, economy rates and boundary fielding were instrumental in Essex’s success in both Championship and one-day competitions in the late Seventies and Eighties. I saw him play many times in an era when left-arm pacemen were a novelty. 

54: Adam Gilchrist

Such was Australia’s strength in depth that Adam Gilchrist was almost 25 when he made his ODI debut and nearly 28 when his Test chance finally came along. He soon made up for lost time, becoming the most exhilarating batsman of the Noughties, AB De Villiers and Chris Gayle notwithstanding. Unfortunately for me, he didn’t make many runs when I saw him play a T20 for Middlesex in his latter years but, like Viv Richards, he seemed to save his best for the grandest occasions like a World Cup Final,. Oh, and he was a damn fine wicketkeeper, too. 

53: Andrew Caddick

Although often derided as an inconsistent loner at international level, Andy Caddick nonetheless took 234 Test wickets, at a rate per match almost comparable with Anderson and better than Broad. Having spent twenty years at Somerset he is a legend in the West Country. New Zealand-born, he shared Richard Hadlee’s sticky-out ears, giant feet and devastating short-of-a-length seamer, and took tons of wickets on the traditional Taunton featherbed. Since his 2009 retirement I have watched several matches from in front of the Andrew Caddick Pavilion. 

52: Harry Pilling

I’ve not picked Ashton-Under-Lyne’s Harry Pilling just because he was only 5 foot 3. However, it’s certainly one of the main reasons! He was a feature of Lancashire’s hugely successful side in the 1970s, especially in one-day tournaments, and as such was frequently on my TV screen in the summer. Compared with the Lloyds, Hayes or Wood, ‘Arry wasn’t the most exciting or prolific batsman but he was highly proficient at finding the gaps and holding a one-day innings together His stature made him look comical in the field but I remember always looking out for him. 

51: Martin Crowe

It’s not Martin Crowe’s fault that the Somerset board’s decision to choose him over Viv Richards ripped the county apart. Even a massive Viv fan like me realised that the young NZ superstar was in 1987 a better prospect, and he duly delivered until his country called him home. He never played for us again but Martin went on to be one of the finest Black Cap batsmen – and useful medium-pacer – of all time. His first-class batting average was an awesome 56 and he top-scored in the 1992 World Cup. His death from cancer at just 53 rightly prompted national mourning.

Windies v England - ODI Cricket is a Funny Old Game

Chewing the fat over the completed one-day international series in the Caribbean, it’s difficult to make any intelligent summary other than – er – “Cricket is a funny ol’ game!”

Before the start of the tour, England may be forgiven for expecting to win the Test series and the ODIs with their hosts liable to nick the ever-unpredictable T20. So far it’s not turning out that way. Joe Root’s men were dealt a heavy blow to their collective egos by crushing defeats at Bridgetown at North Sound before Wood and Root inspired a consolation victory at St Lucia.

Then, in the past fortnight, the ODIs have thrown up a right topsy-turvy quartet of games. The first-innings totals have been 360 (WI), 289(WI), 418 (Eng) and 113 (Eng) with two successful chases and two failures. All very ‘even-Stevens’ and the Grenada washout ensured a respectable 2-2 draw even if it deprive the West Indies a chance to gain their first series win since 2014.

The first and fourth were entertaining run-fests which suited this world-leading England squad down to the ground. On Barbados, Jason Roy and Root hunted down a grand Gayle-inspired target with style, then at St George’s it was a barnstorming 150 in 77 balls from Jos Buttler, supported by his captain Eoin Morgan, which took the visitors past 400, no longer a rare occurrence.

Then it all came undone in the final fixture, as England collapsed against the short ball, notably bowled by young Oshane Thomas. Player after player perished to mistimed hooks, pulls and slashes, allowing the Windies to cruise past the finishing line like Usain Bolt in a field of primary schoolchildren on Sports Day. Instead of Bolt it was his fellow Jamaican Chris Gayle who reminded us what cricket will be missing when he retires after the World Cup. 77 in 27 balls was sensational even by Gayle’s high standards. Add that to his previous scores of 135, 50 and 162 and you get an amazing series for the veteran opener. He resembles a maroon-clad statue these days but when he can slog 39 sixes in four innings, who cares?

As for that World Cup, I don’t think this weekend’s humiliation will have much of a bearing. England’s match pitches will be prepared nice and low to enable Roy, Hales, Stokes, Buttler and Bairstow to do their thing, and the hosts will surely progress to the semis at the very least. This series has also demonstrated that the West Indies have their best chance of success for many years. Gayle looks hungry to bow out with a bang and with Hope and Hetmyer showing promise with the bat and a useful pace attack, the West Indies look more than capable of mixing it with the likes of India, Australia, Pakistan and, of course, England.

Sri Lanka and England keep the Records Flowing

A few weeks ago I read with great interest Andy Zaltzman’s article for BBC Sport, analysing data proving that in Test cricket fast bowlers have been fighting back against the bat’s dominance. Innings of 500+ are becoming thankfully rarer and we’re seeing more sides bowled out. Kabiso Rabada has been a consistent performer in the past two years, averaging little more than 20, and Kemar Roach was irresistible against England.

Perhaps it is no coincidence that this comes alongside higher and higher ODI scores. When at Bridgetown yesterday the Windies fashioned an innings of 360-8, I bet nobody batted an eye nor wrote off England’s chances of hunting down such a huge target. After a lethargic start, Chris Gayle – now resembling more a genial Kingston tourist boat skipper than a sportsman - clubbed 12 sixes (out of a record 23 in the entire innings) in his 24^th ODI century, but Jason Roy and Joe Root each reached three figures in pulling, cutting, driving and slog-sweeping their way to victory with more than an over to spare.

There have been only two higher successful run chases in ODI history, both achieved by South Africa. In October 2016 at Durban, Australia won the toss and duly savaged the home attack. Dale Steyn’s ten overs went for a remarkable 96 runs as Warner and Smith made hay. However, David Miller’s unbeaten 118 ensured the 372 target was reached without too much hassle, albeit off a second-string bowling line-up. It’s now thirteen years since the grand-daddy of them all, when at Jo’burg, Herschelle Gibbs et al squeaked home with 438-9. It’s an extraordinary record but one which will surely be beaten in the next year or two. I wouldn’t bet against England doing it at the next World Cup.

However, the most intriguing record this month was Sri Lanka’s astonishing comeback, again at Durban but this time at the expense of their hosts. Bowlers had again been on top during the first three days and, when Steyn and friends had extended that dominance to have Sri Lanka on the ropes at 226-9, a South Africa victory looked assured. Kusal Perera, batting at number five, looked set to be stranded not far short of his hundred.

Most teams would probably have adopted T20 mode and gone for broke; if we’re gonna lose, might as well go out in a blaze of glory. Not Sri Lanka. New batsman Vishra Fernando played it sensibly while at the other end Perera marshalled the strike brilliantly. Not even a world-class seam attack could break the stand, and Perera steered his side to triumph by punishing the poor ball (five sixes) and keeping a calm head in a tenth-wicket partnership of 78. Such a stand was not only the highest ever in a successful chase in a Test, but in any first-class match. The previous best had come way back in 1936.

Perera’s innings of 153 not out must be one of the best performances of all time, especially in the context of current bowling pre-eminence. This is one record which could endure for many years to come.

Foreign Inspirations: Overseas County Cricketers

At the start of each year, county websites are full of excited reports raving about their new overseas signing for the forthcoming T20 Blast or maybe three Championship games in May. Rolling my eyes at such promotional puff I recall the days when many of the world's biggest stars would appear for the same county, year after year, April to September, first-class fixtures and one-dayers.

Long before I was born, overseas players would extend their earning period by signing as a professional in the Yorkshire or Lancashire leagues. This continued well into the Eighties – imagine taking guard at say, Haslingden, watching Rishton’s Michael Holding steaming in towards you! – but I feel fortunate that my initiation into the joys of cricket coincided with a golden era of international cricketers on the county circuit.

It was probably no coincidence at all. In the early Seventies, watching live coverage of one-dayers, especially the Sunday League, I was thrilled by the performances of the overseas recruits. Most of them were West Indians or Pakistanis, who seemed to play a different way from the home-grown contingent. It’s cricket, Jim, but not as we know it. The Caribbean crew in particular seemed to boast the fastest bowlers, most athletic fielders and finest strokemakers. Watching the likes of Clive Lloyd (Lancashire), Roy Fredericks (Glamorgan), Alvin Kallicharran (Warwickshire) and Vanburn Holder (Worcestershire) also meant I didn’t have to wait four years for the next West Indies tour to enjoy their unique approach to the sport. I vividly recall the black and white images of Nottinghamshire’s Garfield Sobers heaving poor Malcolm Nash for six sixes in an over in 1968.

It wasn’t just about telly. At my first taste of live cricket in May 1975, it was the batting of Somerset’s Viv Richards and fielding of Essex’s Keith Boyce which made the greatest impression on me. Later that summer, I became engrossed in the inaugural Prudential World Cup, noting that many of the biggest names were already on the county scene. If they weren’t at that stage, I wouldn’t have long to wait.

They weren’t the modern day ‘blink-and-you-miss-it’ contracts either. Lloyd, Richards, Kalli, Greenidge, Walsh, Marshall and Zaheer Abbas each represented their respective counties for a decade or more. With none of today’s distractions of year-round T20 tourneys and short ODI series, they racked up career tallies of first-class runs and wickets which dwarf those of current Test superstars. Boosted by their prolific seasons at Gloucestershire, Hampshire and Northants, Courtney Walsh, Malcolm Marshall and Bishan Bedi each retired with well over 1,500 first-class scalps to their names. At the time of writing, Dale Steyn has a mere 612, and even the perennially fit Jimmy Anderson remains ninety short of the thousand landmark.

Throughout my life I haven’t attended a huge volume of county matches but I’ve been lucky to have witnessed some superb international players in action, even if they weren’t necessarily at their best. In addition to the incomparable Viv and Joel Garner for Somerset, Essex used to feature batsmen of the quality of Andy Flower, South African Ken McEwan and Aussies Allan Border, Mark Waugh and Stuart Law.

Other personal highlights have been the giant Sarfraz Nawaz bowling for Northants and Younis Ahmed’s resounding crack of an off drive for Surrey in ’76  (it resonates in my mind still), the jaw-dropping pace of Warwickshire’s Allan Donald (bowling second change) at Ilford in ’95 and Mike Procter almost singlehandedly saving Gloucestershire against Somerset at Bath in ’81. I’m glad he failed in the end!

My favourite Procter (pictured below) moment, however, was when he destroyed Dad’s beloved Hampshire in a 1977 B&H Cup semi-final, this time with his pace bowling. It must have been the first time I’d seen a hat-trick. Had South Africa not been isolated by their country’s political apartheid abomination, Procter would surely have gone down as one of the greatest ever all-rounders. His compatriot Barry Richards was similarly disadvantaged but he and Gordon Greenidge formed for several years the county game’s most formidable opening partnership.

In subsequent decades, other Southern Africans opted to seek international cricket with England by serving their seven-year county apprenticeship to achieve residential status. Allan Lamb, Graeme Hick and Kevin Pietersen spring to mind. It’s not all about traditional Test playing nations, either. I recall in the ‘80s/’90s the extremely economical Danish seamer Ole Mortensen for Derbyshire and Somerset’s profligate Dutchman, Adrian van Troost promoting the European Union.

Imran Khan graced the county circuit for many years, too, first with Sussex then Worcestershire, by which time Pakistan’s Wasim Akram (Lancs) and Waqar Younis (Surrey and Glamorgan) were also on these shores. Banned rebel West Indian Frankly Stephenson twice achieved the 1000 runs/100 wickets double for Notts in 1988 and 1989. In the Nineties, it was against Durham at Edgbaston that Brian Lara stunned the world with his record-breaking 501 not out, and two decades later with Surrey that both Ricky Ponting and Kumar Sangakkara opted to end their first-class careers, the latter in stunning style in 2017.

In more recent times, county fortunes have often been galvanised by the arrival of foreign internationals. Mushtaq Ahmed’s leg-spin transformed Somerset and especially Sussex for whom he helped win two Championship titles. Shane Warne’s overall aura and astute captaincy gave Hampshire impetus in the Noughties, and the veteran Ottis Gibson bowled Durham to success. Several Aussies, unable to break into a formidable Baggy Green batting line-up, also proved influential over here, notably Stuart Law, Michael di Venuto and Chris Rogers, while Michael Klinger’s batting and leadership took Gloucestershire to T20 glory.  

All this brings me back to the current fetish for ultra-brief stints by the likes of Muralitharan, McCullum and Gilchrist, plus jobbing Twenty20 specialists such as Dirk Nannes, Aaron Finch, Colin Munro and the Sultan of Sixes himself, Chris Gayle. These stars undoubtedly help shift season tickets and advance Blast sales. Unfortunately, when in 2015 Somerset snapped up Gayle, the biggest star of them all, it proved to be a bittersweet experience. In the January, it was revealed he’d made good on a three-year promise to join the county for a maximum of six T20 fixtures. Six games! Yippee! He was certainly a huge draw and demonstrated the right attitude towards promotional appearances in schools, etc.

On the pitch, too, the Jamaican fulfilled the hype with devastating innings at Taunton, even if his 151 not out against Kent wasn’t enough to win the match. If only I’d crippled the visitors’ team bus the day before when our paths crossed at Membury Services maybe the result would have been different! Sadly Gayle decided that three matches were enough and duly buggered off. Remember that “maximum of” prefix to the six? He did return to play what must have been an exhausting five matches the following June but with considerably less impact.

All a far cry from those dizzying days of Asif Iqbal, Farokh Engineer, Wayne Daniel and Sylvester Clarke, who’d delight county crowds week in week out. And when they weren’t representing a county, such cricketing celebs would also grace our grounds as part of the country’s tour schedules, which deserves a chapter of its own.....

New Zealand unbeaten in both World T20 tourneys

Apparently there are a couple of international cricket tournaments going on at present in India. An England are doing rather well in both! I haven’t seen much of either, bar the occasional 4-minute taster courtesy of CricInfo’s post-match online highlights packages which consist almost entirely of sixes and wickets. However, what’s interesting about the Men’s World T20 competition in particular is the performances of the leading contenders, good and bad.

Being the host nation, India would have been expected to emerge unscathed from the group stages. However, having lost the opener to New Zealand in somewhat embarrassing fashion, it took a special Virat Kohli innings to see dismiss the Australian challenge in the final Group 2 match at Mohali and see them through. Steve Smith’s side must have fancied their chances of making the semi-finals but, despite some useful all-round cameos from James Faulkner and the retiring Shane Watson, they managed to beat only Pakistan and Bangladesh.

In Group A, England have experienced a typical rolleroaster ride. Initially smashed by Chris Gayle and given an almighty scare by Afghanistan, they were rescued by Joe Root in an amazing run chase against South Africa, then Jos Buttler and fine death bowling by Willey, Jordan and Stokes to thwart Sri Lanka in Delhi.

West Indies had already wrapped up qualification by the time they fell short of Afghanistan’s meagre total of 123 at Nagpur, so this result, memorable as it was for the minnows, probably counts for nothing in the semi-finals.

For all the media coverage of Kohli’s match-winning 82 not out, Pakistan’s miserable campaign and Sri Lanka’s unhealthy reliance on Angelo Mathews and a few spinners, the real stars of the World Cup so far have been New Zealand. The only team with a 100% record, the Black Caps have looked typically ruthless in the group stage. And all their victories have come batting first!

Yet instead of the expected foundation built of Williamson, Taylor, Southee and Boult, their success so far has owed much to the reading of the pitches and the bold selection of spinners at the expense of the experienced seam and swing brigade. Will Sodhi, Milne and Santner strangle the England batsmen in the same way? Will the West Indian leggie Samuel Badree, along with Russell and the wily Dwayne Bravo pose a similar threat to India? The next few days will give us the answers. This is T20 so anything can happen, but I predict an England-India final.

In the Women’s tournament, New Zealand also won four out of four, even beating red-hot favourites Australia thanks to Leigh Kasparek’s three early wickets and Morna Nielsen’s impressive stats of 4-0-4-0! England skipper Charlotte Edwards has been leading from the front and now meet old rivals Australia in the semis. I enjoyed their Ashes contest at Cardiff last summer and so I’ll probably pay more attention to this fixture than either of the men’s knockouts. I reckon Meg Lanning’s team will gain revenge for that defeat in Wales and proceed to meet the West Indies in the climax.

2015 Cricket Team of the Year

The cricketing year produced its usual share of successes and disappointments, retirements and blossoming new talent. Australia won the World Cup but lost the Ashes. India and Sri Lanka lost momentum, New Zealand won a lot of new friends and respect, while Pakistan and England experienced maddening inconsistency. Bangladesh finally showed they are more than Shakib plus fillers, but the West Indies have many mountains to climb if they are to be once again competitive in the Test arena. Gayle, Pollard, Bravo and Russell may be amongst the principal T20 globetrotters but sadly their success seems to be diminishing their prospects at proper cricket.

So who have been the stars of 2015? Steve Smith, Martin Guptill and Chris Gayle were the leading scorers in each of the three international formats. Ravi Ashwin and Mitchell Starc topped the wickets tables in Tess and ODIs. AB De Villiers proved yet again how important he is to South Africa in all types of the sport, and now on top of all his batting and captaincy responsibilities he has taken the gloves in the Test series against England. No wonder he is looking for some time off in 2016. Yet, as his appearances were relatively few, he doesn’t even make my team of the year as it is intended to reflect performances across all forms, domestic and international.

For example, Steven Smith may be righty feted for his form in Tests, but his Aussie team-mate Adam Voges comfortably outscored him (and everybody else) when it came to all first-class cricket. He aggregated 2,547 in the twelve months, but yet even HE doesn’t make my team, as he wasn’t very active in limited overs cricket.

With the ball, Stuart Broad produced one incredible session for England, backed by other useful contributions alongside Jimmy Anderson. Jeetan Patel, Abdur Razzak and Nathan Lyon all added plenty to their career wicket tallies, but time out taken to remodel illegal actions has diminished the effectiveness of traditional spin stars such as Narine and Saeed Ajmal. Instead, there seems to have been a renaissance in left-arm seam and swing bowling.

So to my Eleven of 2015: Chris Gayle may be a T20 specialist (apart from a few World Cup 50-over outings) but his dominance can’t be ignored. His opening partner is Michael Klinger. Arriving at Gloucestershire from a successful domestic season Down Under, the Aussie clumped three T20 centuries in quick succession, before helping them to an unexpected 50-over cup triumph against Surrey. He also amassed 1,666 first-class runs in only 17 matches, making an all-format aggregate of 3,383!

Kumar Sangakkara bowed out of international cricket in 2015 but his form and class were maintained to the end, not only for Sri Lanka but Surrey, too. His overall run total was also comfortably above 3,000 and his glovework did enough to make him my wicketkeeper, too. A modern legend.

Steve Smith’s rise and rise from so-so leg-spinner to Aussie captaincy and leading Test scorer in 2015 is remarkable. His consistency eased the transition from the Michael Clarke era, although it was painful to watch ‘Pup’ struggle for runs in England, which eventually led him to call time on a wonderful career. Yet perhaps the most enjoyable growth in talent belonged to New Zealand’s Kane Williamson. Brendon McCullum’s aggressive yet sporting approach reaped benefits in all forms, but Williamson’s runs were just as important. It is to his great credit that I can find no room for the admirable Joe Root.

My number six is perhaps a little surprising. With a full season with Glamorgan as well as in South Africa, Colin Ingram was free to amass runs in all form of cricket. He could play carefully in the County Championship, yet explode into strokeplay in List A and T20. His strike rate in the latter was 146, right up there with Pollard and Pietersen. I appreciated his willingness to sign autographs for children at the Swalec Stadium boundary, too.

Genuine all-rounders seem to be in short supply at the moment. Dwayne Bravo came into my reckoning but as a T20 one-trick pony, I’ve passed him over in favour of Aussie James Faulkner. Still only 25, his left-arm seam bowling may be his greatest asset, yet in his batting career he averages more than 30 in first-class and List A cricket, and he boasts impressive strike rates. His 2015 performances nudge him into my XI of the year.

Ravi Ashwin was head and shoulders above not only his fellow Indian slow bowlers in height but also every other bowler in Test cricket. He scooped 62 wickets at a mere 17.0 apiece. With 35 ODI victims, too, he’s the first bowler on my team sheet.

Another bowler who can add useful late-order runs is John Hastings. Like Faulkner, a current one-Test wonder, yet a vital cog in the wheels of Durham and Victoria. He took 115 wickets across the year, but even that was eclipsed by the statistics of another Aussie quick. Mitchell Johnson may be the most recognisable of the Mitches, but Starc was the outstanding bowler of 2015. 63 first-class victims at 21, a world-leading 67 List A at a mere 14 apiece, and 21 T20 wickets at an admirable sub-7 economy rate speak for themselves. 100 mph deliveries, too! I just hope he can stay fit for 2016.

My final bowling position is a tough one. Tharindu Kaushal has made little impact on the international scene. However, the 22 year-old off-spinner from Galle amassed a remarkable 111 first-class wickets last year, primarily for the Nondescripts club. Trent Boult has blossomed for New Zealand, yet can I afford to include another left-arm seamer? Perhaps Broad’s right-arm status makes him a contender after all.

Anyway, it’s been an interesting year for cricket in lots of ways. For the record, here is my 2015 Team of the Year:-

Gayle (WI), Klinger (Aus), Sangakkara (SL +), Williamson (NZ), Smith (Aus *), Ingram (SA), Faulkner (Aus), Ashwin (Ind), Hastings (Aus), Starc (Aus), Kaushal (SL). My ‘squad’ also contains Alastair Cook (opener), Root (batsman), Broad and Boult.

T20: It’s been a Blast for Lancashire!

Congratulations to Lancashire for finally getting their collective hands on the domestic Twenty20 trophy! The decision to abandon the ‘block’ of group stage matches in favour of a more prolonged schedule focussing on Fridays and weekends has proved to be a good one. Apparently the attendance figures are up despite it not being a sizzling summer.

Admittedly it wasn’t a vintage Finals Day, but that won’t bother Ashley Giles and his charges, who overcame Hampshire and Northamptonshire at Edgbaston to claim their first one-day silverware since 1999. Lancashire weren’t exactly nailed-on favourites. They progressed to the knockout stage only on net run-rate when rain washed out the games involving them and closest rivals Notts. Then in the quarters, they tied with Kent and qualified for Finals Day on fewer wickets lost. Nevertheless they were the side with the nous and flexibility required to succeed on a low-scoring wicket on a cool August evening.

Batsmen usually grab the headlines in one-dayers but Lancashire’s campaign was built on the bowling of Kyle Jarvis (pre-injury), Arron Lilley and the tournament’s leading wicket-takers James Faulkner and Steven Parry, with 25 apiece. The last three also enjoyed economy rates under seven an over, which is quite an achievement. Their winning team featured several players in their early twenties, including Lilley, T20 specialist Liam Livingstone, debutant Gavin Griffiths and the Final’s Man of the Match, Alex Davies, who is 21 but looks about 16. I don’t know if South African veterans Prince and Petersen will still be around next season to consolidate Lancashire’s Championship Division One status, but much will be thrust upon the shoulders of the locally-produced youngsters.

Some credit must go to captain Steven Croft, whose hundredth consecutive appearance coincided with Finals Day. Born in Blackpool, he has been a reliable all-rounder in all formats for Lancashire for a decade, and deserves a few headlines of his own.

Northants have won the tournament before but will badly miss the explosive batting and fast bowling of David Willey, who scored almost 300 runs and took 15 wickets throughout the summer. They need a thriving T20 Blast merely to survive as a business, as do several other non-Test-playing counties like Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Gloucestershire.

Did the tournament benefit from the contributions of global stars like Jayawardene, McCullum, Maxwell, Tait and Shahid Afridi? Not hugely, I think. Big Brendon struck the highest individual score of the 2015 Blast (158 not out in 64 balls for the Bears), Tait nabbed a creditable 23 wickets and Afridi provided some delightful cameos in the Finals. However, the overseas stars tended to make only fleeting appearances, taking the money and running.

It seems like ages since Chris Gayle swept into Somerset in May, seemingly contracted to play six Blast games. He made an instant impact, smashing sixes galore, 328 runs and peppering the River Tone. However, his early departure after only three matches did leave a sour taste in the mouths of Somerset fans like me. I doubt we would have qualified even had he stayed for another week but a lot of tickets – home and away – were sold on the basis of his appearances, and his absences felt like betrayal.

The top run scorers were predominantly home-grown. In an otherwise mediocre season, James Vince excelled in the Blast, Sam Northeast struck some big scores at hefty rates for Kent, and the ever-reliable Luke Wright topped 500 runs at a remarkable 172 per 100 balls, beaten only by Gayle. However, a special mention must go to Michael Klinger. The Aussie opener missed the start of the season but delivered an incredible three centuries and four fifties in twelve innings!

While the big old names from Sri Lanka, South Africa and Pakistan deservedly carry much weight to go with their pay packets, I think the (mainly young) T20 audiences would prefer to see the England internationals like Bell, Buttler, Broad and Root representing their counties. They are the ones who will ultimately encourage children to take up cricket and their absence from most of the matches is regrettable if inevitable.

Finally, here is my T20 Blast team of 2015.

Vince (Ham), Klinger (Glo), Wright (Sus), Willey (Nor), Northeast (Ken), Bopara (Ess), Faulkner (Lan), Wheater (Ham +), Parry (Lan), Lilley (Lan), Tom Smith (Glo).

Individual of 2015: Chris Gayle (Som).

Gayle Force in Somerset, Raine-ing success for Leicester

Just for a change, I’ll start my weekly review of the county cricket action at the foot of Division Two. The reason is that Leicestershire have finally won a Championship match for the first time since September 2012. When Lewis Hill nudged the single which took them past Essex’s target, you’d think they’d won the World Cup! Maybe now the hoodoo is broken, they can kick on. They actually have some decent players. Unfortunately, the team they beat at Chelmsford are looking very weak. The top order can’t score and without Topley and Masters the young Essex attack lacks experience.

The top two played out a boring draw on a bat-friendly Oval pitch. There were centuries for Jason Roy, Rory Burns and, for the first time, James Faulkner but only two runs for the returning Kevin Pietersen. Surrey narrowed the gap behind Lancashire by just one point, but Glamorgan are now only eight points adrift of second place after defeating Northants by ten wickets. Craig Meschede’s 107 and 3-19 made the difference.

At Derby, Jack Taylor struck his debut hundred for Gloucestershire then after a couple of last morning declarations, his miserly 2-19 almost secured victory over a second-rate Derbyshire. Dilshan has yet to produce the killer innings and only Billy Godleman and Shiv Thakor exceeded 20 in the second innings. However, Gloucester could take only eight wickets and a draw ensued.

In the top tier, Middlesex leapfrogged Durham despite drawing with Warwickshire, but Nottinghamshire enjoyed a victory over a promising Sussex side. Despite poor weather, it was all over inside three days, and there were several performances to savour. Pity Steve Magoffin: 12 wickets yet finished on the losing side. Former Notts favourite Bruce French has a new family star. His nephew Jake Ball took 9-67 in total, Samit Patel hit 100 but teenager Luke Wood fared even better. With Notts reeling at 98-7, he surprised everyone by thumping exactly 100 in 96 balls. Allied to five wickets, he did more than anyone to ensure his county escaped the relegation zone.

In the other match, Hampshire dug themselves out of the mire on day 4 to avoid losing against fellow strugglers Worcestershire, for whom captain Daryl Mitchell hit an unbeaten 142.

It may not have been a vintage week in the Championship but last weekend, the NatWest Blast competition really came alive as some of the IPL superstars joined at the party. There’s no bigger name in T20 than Chris Gayle. Not only did he bring in thousands through the turnstiles at Chelmsford and Taunton but he also sent local residents - human and fish – scurrying and swimming to safety amidst a blitz of sixes. Against Essex, his 92 in 59 balls laid the foundation for a last-ball victory for Somerset. Then, facing a huge Kent total courtesy of Sam Northeast, he smashed an unbeaten 151 only to miss the target by just three runs! What would we do without him?! Hats off, too, to Paul Stirling and Dawid Malan, for giving Middlesex fans plenty to cheer about in the short format game, too. After three weeks, there are no clear favourites; almost every team has won at least one match. Only Kent – with four wins in five – have established some sort of winning sequence.

Team of the Week: Gayle (Som), Stirling (Mid), Northeast (Ken, *), Patel (Not), Watling (NZ), Roy (Sur), Ronchi (NZ, +), Raine (Lei), Wood (Not), Ball (Not), Magoffin (Sus)

Quarter-Finals go with form, but can both hosts reach the Final?

More World Cup matches, more records, but the organiser would be more relieved that the big four progressed to the semi-finals. It wasn't all about the batsmen either, as the bowlers were in the ascendancy at Sydney and Adelaide.

The Aussies gave short shrift to Pakistan. It was Josh Hazlewood's turn to take four wickets, before Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Shane Watson applied the coup de grace with the bat. The scoreboard doesn't show the nasty sledging aimed by the Aussie fielders at Wahab Riaz, nor the magnificent fast bouncers delivered by a fired-up Riaz in response to Watson. Both were fined but nevertheless it was Watson who had the last laugh, ending not out and remaining in the competition.

New Zealand continued their serene procession, thanks mainly to Martin Guptill's second-half blitz on the West Indian quicks. The opener shattered Chris Gayle's newly-notched World Cup record score on his way to 237, and poor Andre Russell very nearly went for a century of runs against his name. Gayle started as ferociously as the situation demanded, thumping eight sixes but once Milne bowled him, the game was effectively over. Trent Boult added four more wickets to his tally and Jason Holder's men were on their way home.

Earlier, there had been a rare day in the sun for South Africa's spinners, JP Duminy and Imran Tahir in the first quart-final. After Abbott and Steyn had removed both Sri Lankan openers cheaply, even Kumar Sangakkara could not muster a run every two balls and his side slumped to 133 all out. Not even the South Africans cold throw away such a commanding position but Quinton De Kock struck twelve boundaries to make sure.

In the other match, India maintained their unbeaten run and ended Bangladesh's extended World Cup adventure by 109 runs. Rohit Sharma's excellent 137 did the early damage before Yadav led the attack superbly. Ten more wickets, all bar one down to catches, and India are still looking a great all-round outfit rather than talented batsmen and fielders hoping to win by sheer volume of runs.

But now they face the host nation, and it'll be an interesting clash between the two sets of passionate fans, too, at the SCG on Thursday. Sydney may have witnessed a Sri Lankan meltdown this week but you can't forget the huge first innings totals racked up by the Proteas and Green Baggies against West Indies and Sri Lanka in the group stages. The toss will be a good one to win, although both teams are capable of pacing a run chase.

NZ v SA will be a fascinating encounter, too. I'd love to see McCullum's team reach their first ever World Cup Final but then, of course, neither of these two have yet won the trophy. Eden Park has witnessed two exciting contests, South Africa's narrow defeat by Pakistan and the Black Caps' single-wicket spine-tingler against the Aussies, so there may not be any batting records tumbling in this one. Both teams boast a first-class attack, while AB De Villiers and Brendon McCullum can tear bowlers apart in the right conditions.

I'd like to see India v New Zealand in the final but somehow I reckon Australia v South Africa is the more likely, with Watson or Warner coming to blows with Dale Steyn, both sides banned and the trophy presented to Ireland..... Maybe not, but I can see Michael Clarke as the man accepting the trophy and delivering the victor's speech.

Ireland and Afghanistan rival Gayle for excitement

A few days ago, all the World Cup talk was about Chris Gayle's sensational double-century against Zimbabwe. However, for all the records he and Marlon Samuels established at Canberra, nothing beats an exciting humdinger between two well-matched teams.

The money-grabbing idiots at the ICC, who see only dollar signs when the likes of India, Australia and England are scheduled for Melbourne, Sydney and Wellington, don't want a tournament with too many boring games, too many one-sided contests. I agree. 8 wickets with 38 overs to spare? Hang on, that's NZ v England. 130 runs with 10 overs left? Wait, that's India v SA. 111 runs and 8 overs short? Oh, England v the Aussies.

Yet the best matches have been Ireland's victories over the Windies (a 4 wicket margin in a 600-run thriller) and the UAE (2 wickets with 4 balls remaining) and now Afghanistan's stunning last-over, one-wicket triumph over Scotland. The spectators at leafy Dunedin may have been outnumbered by the Indian flag-wavers at the MCG but would they rather have been anywhere else given the superb entertainment dished out?

Such as shame for Scotland, still without a World Cup win, but what a result for Afghanistan, worthy World Cup competitors after only ten years! They gave Sri Lanka a good game, too, while Scotland were three wickets short of a major upset against home side New Zealand.

Samiullah Shenwari's 96 was as classy and, well, perfect as any innings we have seen in the past few weeks. Not a six-fest but he cleared the ropes when he had to. The only failure was his dismissal just 4 runs short of a century. Shapoor Zadran's 70s style length of both hair and run-up didn't stop him nabbing four key wickets either. It didn't matter either that the Ireland-UAE clash featured only three sixes. Shaiman Anwan's 106 (following an ultimately unsuccessful 67 vs Zimbabwe) and Kevin O'Brien's late-innings heroics still lit up proceedings. Kev's brother Niall struck an unbeaten 79 to steer the Irish to that success against West Indies in Nelson, a game where Gayle could only scratch around for 65 balls to score 36.

These Associate stars need the spotlight that a global tournament offers. I don't care what the TV companies and organisers say: for all the cash and adulation heaped on the likes of Kohli, AB, Warner and co, we want to see some fun-packed finales. In football, FIFA has continually expanded its own World Cup, and there's talk of even more nations being allowed to qualify for the final stages. That may well owe more to politics and the power wielded by the smallest of countries but without the rise from 16 to 24 nations in the 1980s, would African nations and players have developed as much as they have? Ditto Japan, South Korea and Australia?

I think there is no chance of the current Associates being elevated to Test status in the foreseeable future but please let's have more fixtures between, say, Ireland and India, Afghanistan and Australia, and so on. Even if they are one-off bolt-ons in more glamorous tours. It would be a start and, who knows, the United Arab Emirates could become the Sri Lanka of the 2020s. In the mean time, we must all put pressure on the ICC to change their mind and develop the sport instead of pandering to the BCCI, CA and the rest.

A few more upsets in the coming weeks would be even better.

KKR are the new Kings of IPL

Regular readers will know that the IPL and me are not natural bedfellows. I don't sit in front of BBC4 every afternoon in May yawning through the timeouts and ad breaks while the pitches gleam like coloured glass, the boundary ropes creep ever closer to the stumps, the cheerleaders shake their....pom-poms and that blasted trumpet trill punctuates seemingly every over.

Nevertheless, the IPL is part of the world cricket scene and I can't ignore it. Many players in the UAE and India have smashed or twirled their way into my Team of the Week and it's always interesting to see how many globetrotting T20 mercenaries fail while internationally unknown locals find themselves thrust into the spotlight, if only for a few months. I don't necessarily see it as a training ground for proper cricket, Test cricket, but it does produce some entertainment and excitement, the vital ingredient for any sport.

IPL 2014 definitely benefited from its truncated length. Maybe more franchises should go bust and keep the competition even more concise and less drawn out. Another positive from this year is the way the two best sides reached the final and produced a classic of big hitting, albeit not from the big names.

For once, Chris Gayle was useless, accumulating fewer than 200 runs at barely a run a ball. The Bangalore opener was presumaby unfit but an essential part of the IPL nonetheless, at least in the eyes of sponsors and the casual spectator. Kevin Pietersen fared a little better as Delhi skipper, yet a single 50 in 11 innings at a scoring rate of 126 was not a good return. Dare I suggest he was - er - distracted?!

Of the Aussie recruits, only Glenn Maxwell and David Warner did the business with the bat, while Watson, Bailey, Finch and Mike Hussey disappointed on the whole. The English counties will surely hope from more from their Antipodean investments this summer. South Africans Miller, AB and Duminy were their consistent selves, unlike De Kock and the once reliable Jacques Kallis. With no international cricket in his schedule, the Saffer legend produced only one score of note, a 72 in the very first game for KKR. At least he was part of the victorious squad.

With the ball, Sunil Narine took another 21 wickets at a typically miserly 6.35 an over, Mitch Johnson had some memorable days but Dale Steyn proved human, at times being clouted around the grounds he once ruled as a dangerous death bowler. Meanwhile Lasith Malinga restored faith in his ability to bowl fast and full to frustrate the big hitters when it matters.

Overall, numerous Indian players caught the eye. Sehwag, Raina and Yusuf Pathan might be remembered for their brutal landmark innings but they were not the outstanding performers of the tournament. Robin Uthappa demonstrated the consistency of a great Test opener rather than a Powerplay power merchant. He struck a sensational ten consecutive scores of 40 or more in a total of 660. Only 18 sixes yet a laudable scoring rate of 138 made him a deserving winner of whatever colourful trophy goes to the top run-getter.

Mohit Sharma took more wickets than anyone else (23), albeit conceding more than eight an over. Another seamer Bhuvi Kumar wasn't far behind, but his economy rate for the Sunrisers was a more impressive 6.65. The experienced Harbhajan Singh, Ravi Jadeja and Ravi Ashwin bowled creditably, but for me the star names were probably 20 year-old Akshar Patel and a man more than twice his age, Pravin Tambe. Slow left-armer Patel's 17 wickets at only 6.13 an over proved vital for Kings XI's progress to their first final. Meanwhile leg-spinner Tambe, whose age in years easily outnumbers the number of senior matches under his belt, usually proved hard to hit for the Royals. Tambe's time for a Test career has probably past him by - by about twenty years - but Patel is a promising prospect. He'll command big money at IPL 2015 and how he copes with that may determine his opportunities for international cricket, whatever the format.

Essex meek, SA squeak

What a day of cricketing contrasts! At Chelmsford, the Essex faithful witnessed one of the worst batting failures in modern history while in Cardiff, Duckworth-Lewis served up the cruellest of finishes for the West Indies and luckiest for South Africa.

The County Championship has produced mixed fortunes for Essex this season. When they were trounced by Northants earlier in the season, coach Paul Grayson humbly apologised. This evening the dressing room was in shock after Glen Chapple and Kyle Hogg ripped through the Eleven in barely an hour. Twenty all out is their lowest ever score in the competition and the lowest by anyone against Lancashire. In the days of black-and-white, a team might at least have had uncovered wickets as an excuse for such an appalling performance but the Chelmsford pitch was supposedly placid, the visitors having just racked up 398, with the aforementioned Chapple and Hogg each scoring half-centuries at the tail end!

Even more remarkable is that 75% of Essex's second innings came from boundaries, two of which were scored by Jaik Mickelburgh who came perilously close to carrying his bat for ten runs! Lancashire's innings victory takes them to second place and into strong contention for promotion. Essex remain in mid-table but their confidence must be zapped to pieces. Elsewhere in Division Two, Kyle Coetzer's career-best 219 was the cornerstone of Northants' massive score but rain helped Leicestershire survive. Hampshire accepted Gloucestershire's stiff final-day target of 411 after forfeited innings, but may have regretted it after falling almost 200 short.

In Division One, Yorkshire (easily) and Durham (in a nailbiting climax against Warwickshire) claimed their fourth wins of the campaign and occupy the top two slots, displacing Middlesex who were crushed by the White Roses.

So, back to Cardiff and that rain-truncated Group B game in the Champions Trophy. That there were enough hours between showers to have any real contest was a bonus but the way the game ended was remarkable. West Indies had already won the toss and put the Saffers in, but as Ingram, De Villiers, Miller et al stroked their way to 230-6 in the 31 allotted overs, it looked a difficult proposition. Buoyed by Dale Steyn's return to fitness, South Africa kept Johnson Charles fairly quiet although Chris Gayle had moved on to 36 before giving a leading edge catch off Morris. Samuels entertained for a while but, with the clouds amassing, most eyes were on the fluctuating D/L par score.

With Pollard and Dwayne Bravo at the crease, they were keeping pace until the former heaved at McLaren and was well caught at third man by Steyn. The clouds wept heavy drizzle and no sooner had Darren Sammy reached the middle the umpires waved everybody off. They were 190-6 and the D/L par score? 190! No further play was possible and so it ended a tie! With one point apiece, South Africa qualified for the semis on net run rate. Had Pollard not been out the previous ball the Windies would have won the game and AB's men would be on their way home. A tough way to go but big Kieron could not have predicted the imminent arrival of the rain.

So the Proteas squeak through, behind the Indians who are now guaranteed to play at Cardiff next Thursday. Glad I have that ticket! Who they play is anyone's guess. Sadly the weather forecasts for the weekend are dismal indeed, especially for the England v NZ clash. I'd say one of those two will win Group A, with Sri Lanka possibly joining them in the knockouts. India v Sri Lanka at Cardiff. That's a mouth-watering match if ever there was one.

CSK lead the way

I know it's not my favourite competition - give me the County Championship any day, even with Somerset's dreadful run! - but the IPL is worth following just to see how the world's best cricketers fare against each other in the biff-bang game. Chris Gayle is the king of Twenty20 but even his sixes couldn't drag RCB into the top four. Not only that, but the Chennai Super Kings feature batsmen who have outperformed the West Indian opener.

Surely CSK should have the firepower in depth to win the final this weekend, whoever the opposition. Mike Hussey has played the same number of games as Gayle, yet has accumulated 24 more runs, featuring six half-centuries in the 16 innings. His 58-ball 86 not out against the Indians was superb and it took an even more ferocious performance by team-mate Suresh Raina to steal the headlines, though not the Man of the Match award.

Of the top players, Gayle doesn't even boast the best strike rate. That belongs to another CSK stalwart, their irrepressible skipper MS Dhoni. He may have endured considerable criticism since India slipped off their perch as number one Test nation but in the short formats, MS is as good as anyone. A strike rate of more than 167, with just the final to come, is phenomenal. Needless to say, he has also made more dismissals behind the stumps (15) than anyone else in this year's competition.

With the ball, CSK also field the highest wicket-taker, Darren Bravo. His 28 scalps often seem to come at the death, with a soaring economy rate to match, but his contribution to the Chennai cause cannot be overlooked. Lasith Malinga has been eclipsed at last! He wasn't even the best fast bowler in Mumbai's side; that is Mitch Johnson. Mean bowling is usually the preserve of the spinners such as Harbjajan Singh, Mishra and the excellent Sunil Narine, but Dale Steyn's 19 wickets at under a run a ball have taken the Sunrisers to touching distance of the final. James Faulkner has snared an impressive 27 IPL victims this year, making him the star of the Royals' march to the final eliminator. I hadn't realised what a fine all-round record he has in first-class cricket, too, so could a Test call-up be far away?

So will Chennai Super Kings claim their third title in four years? Even if they don't, their ace performers have lit up the tournament. Mike Hussey may have retired from Test cricket but his class in all cricket remains undimmed. The lights may have gone out on Tendulkar and Ponting this Spring but Mr Cricket, about to reach his 38th birthday, shines as brightly as ever.

Chris Gayle - Simply the Best

Just when you thought the world's greatest Twenty20 batsman has done everything, he goes and breaks just about all remaining records. We all knew Chris Gayle can win matches on his own but today he beat Pune Warriors all by himself. 175 in 66 balls, two wickets in one over, ... I half expected to inspect the scorecard and find he'd stumped Murtaza off his own bowling!

People have slammed the opposition bowling for being weak but, let's face it, this is T20. When a humungous talent like Gayle sits in the zone, no bowler on earth can stop him, short of tempting a mis-hit to a man on the square leg boundary. Not Steyn, not Ajmal, not Narine. I have often derided the format for producing one-off star performances and building instant reputations which can never again be justified. However, the amiable Jamaican is in a class of his own once he gets going. Viv Richards in his pomp was similar in the way he could be snaffled early in an innings but, with a few cracking boundaries to his name, bowlers could merely watch and admire. And that was in Test matches. He achieved the highest ever score in T20, the highest number of sixes (17) and the fastest ever T20 century, in a mere 30 balls.
What was even more astonishing is that his innings was interrupted by rain!

Gayle's career statistics make incredible reading. Brad Hodge may have accumulated more T20 runs in total, but the West Indian's 5,236 have come in a mere 134 innings. His strike rate is bettered only by Kieron Pollard but his Caribbean colleague has struck nowhere near his awesome record of 383, an average of almost three every time he takes guard! Gayle has scored almost as many runs and centuries in T20 as he has in Tests. Eleven hundreds all told; that's the same as McCullum, Warner, Sehwag and Pollard COMBINED!

It must be a great feeling to be an RCB fan right now, yet Gayle didn't even have the highest strike rate in today's innings. That accolade went to team-mate AB De Villiers who had the audacity to plunder 31 runs in only eight balls at the death. And nobody will remember it because this day belonged to Chris Gayle. It took 2962 ODIs before Sachin Tendulkar claimed the first 50+-over double-century. I suspect that it could take a lot fewer before Mr Gayle plunders the first twenty-over 200. His ODI best is a 'puny' 153 not out but I wouldn't complain if he reproduced his IPL heroics in the Champions Trophy semi-final at Cardiff this summer!

One-Day Cricketers of 2012

Rangana Herath's prolific wicket-taking apart, Sri Lanka's apparent disdain for Test cricket was evident in the lack of their batsmen in the run-scoring league. However, they seemed to be playing ODIs non-stop, which explains why SL men dominate the end-of-year tables for the 50-over format.

Kumar Sangakkara may have topped the 10,000 Test run barrier recently but 2012 also saw him reach the same landmark for ODIs, and nobody scored more runs last year in this form of cricket, international or otherwise (1184 at 43.85). Team-mate Tillekeratne Dilshan was just behind him. Aussies played only half the number of one-dayers in the gold and green, but David Hussey, David Warner and George Bailey scored freely for club and country.

Virat Kohli smashed no fewer than five ODI hundreds in 2012, aggregating more than 1000 runs at an impressive average of 73 and close on a run a ball. He was third, too, on the T20I run leaderboard, making 444 runs at the equivalnet of eight an over. However, he wasn't such a successful globetrotting T20 franchise star in the mould of Chris Gayle, who compiled more than 1,500 runs around the world, comfortably ahead of the nearest challenger, Azhar Mahmood, the Pakistani all-rounder. The shift from 50 to 20 overs in the cricketing calendar was best illustrated by the T20 diary of Kieron Pollard. He notched up fifty matches, incorporating 1,041 runs at a strike rate of 163 plus a fair few wickets.

New Zealand pair Martin Guptill and Brendan McCullum looked feeble in this week's Test defeat but nobody scored more T20 international runs in 2012, each notching more than 450 at SRs of 130+. Shane Watson was the outstanding T20 all-rounder, claiming 406 runs and 17 wickets at a commendable economy rate for a fast-medium pacer.

South Africa played relatively few international one-day matches yet Hashim Amla and AB De Villiers still dominated the year's stats as well as opposition bowlers. Amla appeared in only 10 ODIs but scored 678 runs, while the redoubtable AB thrashed 645 whilst achieving the amazing double of 100+ average and strike rate. Chandimal may have scored more runs but I'd have AB as my one-day wicket-keeper any day of the week!

Don't forget that two of the finest Test batsmen of 2012 were also successful ODI performers. Alastair Cook and Michael Clarke combined captaincy with 699+ runs with healthy strike rates of around 80.

Watson, Dwayne Bravo, Pollard and Luke Wright are always useful members of a T20 side, but perhaps the most impressive ODI all-rounder was Thisara Perera. His 32 ODI wickets were augmented by 246 lower-order runs.

My decision not to consider T20 and List A cricket separately is supported by the fact that most bowlers who excelled at one format also did so at the other. Lasith Malinga took more wickets globally in both than anyone else. Curiously, while his his 10-over stints tend to be quite expensive, Malinga's T20 brilliance enshrines wicket-taking ability and economy, along with that enthusiasm which makes him such a valuable player, even with only four overs at his disposal. West Indian spinner Sunil Narine is another who starred in all one-day cricket. His economy rates of 3.63 (List A) and just 5.64 (T20) are phenomenal. Possibly the cricketer of 2011, Saeed Ajmal must also be a contender for the same unofficial accolade in 2012. He was amongst the top ten international wicket-takers in ALL three formats.

Englishmen worth noting include young spinner Danny Briggs and paceman Steve Finn who each harnessed strike and economy rates for county and country. Australia has plenty of bowlers but most seem to be on the treatmemt table. It was therefore amusing to see 40-something Brad Hogg play more than 50 T20 matches, in which he took 47 wickets, conceding barely a run a ball. Young fast bowler Mitch Starc looked a T20 man for the future, taking more than two wickets a game across the year, finishing with only four fewer wickets than Malinga in twelve fewer games. Clint McKay was particularly effective in the List A format.

So, for my combined List A/T20 team of the year, I'll go for:-

Gayle, Watson, Amla, Kohli, Sangakkara, De Villiers (+), Perera, Malinga, Finn, Narine, Saeed Ajmal (with Starc standing by in case Finn breaks down again!)

Tino bests Bangla best

In many ways it would have been nice to have been commemorating Bangladesh's record innings score with a memorable win against the West Indies. However, the home team showed again why they can't quite make that transition to the elite of the elite.

That they came remotely close to a first Test victory since beating a weakened Windies three years ago is itself remarkable given the visitors' dominance of the first two days. Chris Gayle gave debutant Sohag Gazi a dreadful drubbing in his first over, including a first ball six, before the 21 year-old snared the big man a few overs later. Kieran Powell reached his third Test hundred, then Shiv Chanderpaul and Denesh Ramdin shared an unbeaten 296-run stand, with the former equalling his best score in Test cricket (203 not out) before his cpatain declared on 527-4 declared.

No massive scores in reply but Bangladesh batted almost all the way down the order to achieve a record total of 556 all out. Naeem Islam was the only centurion but Nasir Hossain came mighty close, thumping four sixes in his 96. West Indies also fielded a debutant, spinner Veerasammy Permaul, whose only wicket in this innings was that of the Bangladesh skipper.

A 29-run lead in three days set the scene for an interesting finale, although a draw looked the more likely result. Gayle departed early again but his fellow opener Powell again compensated, striking a second hundred with support from Darren Bravo. With Chanderpaul injured, Sohag Gazi claimed an excellent 6-74 leaving his side an eminently reachable target of 245 in about 70 overs. Unfortunately, the skill and inspiration of the first innings deserted them. Yes, they were consistent - but only in that plenty reached double figures but none managed to make thirty. New boy Permaul took 3-32 but the matchwinner proved not to be a spinner but paceman Tino Best.

Often derided for his wayward bowling, Best lived up to his reputation in the early exchanges but maybe his failings contributed to his success because the batsmen struggled to cope with the variety of short balls, wide stuff and the occasional full and straight delivery. Averaging a feeble forty-odd in Tests, Tino's 5-24 was easily his - er - best in a 17-match career which stretches back almost ten years. He made his debut in 2003 at Bridgetown, he bowled twenty wicketless overs for 99 against the all-conquering Aussies.

Bangladesh are not in the same league, of course, but his performance this week ensured the Windies avoided an embarrassing defeat which would have dampened their new-found confidence. Bangladesh fans would have been desperate for a big scalp and so must be bitterly disappointed to see their side capitulate so easily. Some criticised them for being too negative early on but on day five of a Test, going out guns blazing would probably have been a suicidal strategy. In truth they simply weren't good enough to win, but it may give them heart as they prepare for the second Test at Khulna. Eleven months without a Test may also have contributed to their failure this weekend so the practice may yet yield dividends.

Gayle takes the Windies to the brink

Hats off to Chris Gayle. Every opposition captain knows that if you remove the charismatic opener you have a far greater chance of beating the West Indies. Yet, match after match they seem unable to get him out until it's too late, if at all.

Against the Aussies, he plundered a typical bravura 75 not out which, assisted by a brutal Pollard cameo, set Bailey's men a target which was way out of their reach. Shane Watson had earlier won four consecutive Man of the Match awards and now Gayle has struck three successive half-centuries. Sri Lanka must now be a bit nervous as they prepare for a world final on home territory.

Their own victory over Pakistan highlighted the special trio at the top of the batting order, especially Mahela Jayawardene who has long been a favourite of mine in any format. Their batting has a frail look further down the order apart, maybe, from Angelo Matthews. Nevertheless, on paper the Sri Lanka bowling looks stronger, from the formidable Malinga and under-rated Kulasekera to the spin of Herath and the two Mendises.

Twenty20 cricket, of course, is not played on paper and is more unpredictable than any team sport I can think of. I don't know whether home advantage has been the key factor but Sri Lanka have deserved to reach the final. Their only defeat so far has been in the 7-over slogathon at the hands of South Africa, with a further Super Over narrow squeak over New Zealand and perhaps the cup is destined to nestle in the capable hands of Mahela.

But the Windies have surprised me at the ease of their progress, particularly in the semis at the expense of the other form team. Darren Sammy has the look of a man who doesn't really believe he is he captain of an international side on the verge of success. It's been so long since a Caribbean team have looked world-beaters, two decades in the shadows of Lloyd, Richards, Lara, Marshall, Walsh et al. OK, so it's only T20, but a trophy of any kind will give West Indian cricket a shot in the arm it so badly needs. T20 is a game where one innings can win a match and, if Gayle falls short, Bravo or Samuels has to step up and deliver a match-winning score. A spinning wicket will hurt them but they do have a genuine chance. Form teams have a habit of coming a cropper in this type of competition and that may well give the West Indies the confidence and motivation to beat the local favourites and keep the T20 World Cup out of Asian hands for another two years.

Man of the Moment: Chris Gayle

Readers of this blog will know that I'm not Chris Gayle's most ardent fan. I'm not generally impressed by players who are happy to make lucrative T20 appearances and to hell with their country, and sadly the laconic Jamaican has in the past been one of those. Indeed, the sporting dictionary probably contains the entry under C: 'Cricketing mercenary: see Chris Gayle'. The West Indies Board hasn't helped matters. Apart from the magnificent Shivnarine Chanderpaul, now officially the world's best Test batsman, Gayle is by some margin the Windies' best player, and has been for a number of years, yet he and the powers that be have never really got on, and so the opener has told them where to go and has gleefully plied his trade in the biff-bang stuff and proved there is no man in the world better at bludgeoning sixes or thumping extremely rapid centuries. For some reason, relations seem to have thawed. As a Somerset fan, I despair at the timing. Just when things were looking so flaming promising for us, our opening dream team has turned into a nightmare, Trescothick injured and now Gayle suddenly declaring undying love for the West Indies. Once his IPL commitments are completed, of course. That's one contract he absolutely CANNOT break! So will he play for the West Indies? Duh! Who would England rather not bowl at later this month? Adrian Barath, Kirk Edwards or Chris Gayle? Exactly. Apart from his incredible T20 achievements, his record for the islands is not wonderful. He may be better than most of his countrymen but these days it isn't saying very much, however hard they try. He may have a few Test triples to his name, but an average below 42 is moderate in the current era. His strike rate is only on a par with Ricky Ponting, too. What may be more significant is that since 2008, he averaged 58 but even the more flexible, lovable Chris hasn't made himself available to add to his tally 91 Tests. In one-dayers, Gayle's strike rate of 84 places him below feared six-meisters like Mark Boucher and Mashrafe Mortaza so he's not as good as he likes to make out. However, righth now, his value to the Windies could be immense. He could bring in the crowds, win back fans and in technical terms, worry the hell out of Anderson and Broad during Powerplays. Support from his colleagues has been somewhat underwhelming. Darren Sammy welcomed him back into the fold yet pointedly reminded the prodigal son about the new "hardworking culture" in the West Indies dressing room. Coach Ottis Gibson sounded peeved about the situation of players picking and choosing when and where they wanted to represent their country. I don't know how the other hard-working dressing room occupants feel about Gayle's return to the side in England this month, but if it doesn't affect their own determination to succeed and Gayle's talent galvanises a side which is starting to recover form and dignity on the world stage under Sammy, then it would be a good move. Trouble is, next time a one-day series clashes with some parochial T20 tournament (Singapore Sixathon? Bangkok Biff? Serbia Slogfest?), will Gayle make himself slightly less than available again for Gibson et al? His last ODI was last March (8 runs in 9 balls)when Pakistan crushed the Windies in the World Cup quarter-final, and his batting average has deteriorated steadily since 2008. On the other hand, his strike rate has risen considerably since his early days, clearly influenced by the gung-ho style adopted to such acclaim in Twenty20. Oddly his record at home is much worse than abroad, although England is not a happy hunting ground for him. His opportunity to play a few matches may win a few friends but he needs to commit more than just a few weeks to the cause. His treatment of Somerset smarts more than a little but Brand Gayle is one of the biggest in world cricket and when he is on fire, as in the IPL, he is worth an admission fee alone. He has, however, yet to win me over.

Team of the Year: T20

Part 3 of my 2011 retrospectives takes me to Twenty20. Not my favourite format but undeniably entertaining and still expanding across the world like a virus. Hopefully a benign one but I still fear it wil ultimately smother the long-standing formats which have served cricket so well for more than a century. The T20 game has served to demonstrate how the very best players can succeed in any type of cricket (Tendulkar, Kallis, Sangakkara, both Husseys) while also giving others a new route to world-class status. The growth of T20 from the original English competition to IPL, Champions League, Big Bash and others has led to some stars performing in more T20s than List As and first-class matches combined. In 2011 alone, Ryan Ten Doeschate appeared in 40 fixtures across four continents. However, he didn't make my team the year. Here are those who did.

The opening batsmen pick themselves. Chris Gayle scored 1497 runs in only 31 games, including four centuries, at an incredible strike rate just shy of 175. He's also had three ducks but fail to snare him in the first over and he'll kill you! He even averages almost four sixes per innings and can also bowl some economic spells, too. Almost the perfect short-form cricketer, and he knows it! David Warner has finally broken into the Aussie Test team after some fine Sheffield Shield performances but he remains the only man other than Gayle to pass 1000 T20 runs in the calendar year.

Virat Kohli was the biggest scoring ODI batsman of the year and he makes my team as number three in the T20 game. While representing only Indian national or IPL franchise sides, he still aggregated 941 runs in 28 games. Like most non-openers, he didn't reach three figures but is a clever innings-builder and a brilliant fielder, too, worth many runs for his side even when not at the crease. Brendan McCullum should be high in the order while playing as wicketkeeper, too. More than 700 runs in only 21 matches during 2011 maintains his reputation as one of the world's top exponents of T20 cricket at national and domestic levels. At 28, Shaun Marsh should be more than just a rising star of Aussie cricket but, like Warner, deserves a longer run at the top level. In the T20 game in the past year, he produced 860 runs at a strike rate just shy of 150, missing out on a Big Bash century just the other week.

The Hussey brothers are both excellent one-day players. While David has scored more runs in 2011, I'd plump for his older sibling Mike Hussey for my team, alongside Victorian all-rounder Andrew McDonald, who for Leicestershire was one of the stars of England's domestic competition.

For my frontline attack I'll include two fast bowlers, Lasith Malinga and Alfonso Thomas. The Sri Lankan has an uncanny knack of delivering unplayable yorkers which either produce dot balls or, even better, wickets. He has taken more wickets (41) at one of the lowest averages (13) and strike rates (5.9) than anyone else in the game during 2011. An automatic choice. 'The Fons' has been a great performer for Somerset and a brilliant 'death bowler' which has propelled the county into one of the finest teams on the planet. He was one of Pune Warriors' best imports, too.

In addition to Gayle and Hussey, Saeed Ajmal and Ravi Ashwin complete my spin contingent. Ajmal thus becomes the only man in all three of my 2011 Elevens. He must now be a target for the 2012 IPL franchises, conceding fewer than 6 an over and boasting an average of just 12 runs per wicket. Ashwin was one of the stars of IPL 2011, often opening the bowling to great effect and he nudges out Shakib al Hasan, Mishra and Briggs.

So my team contains no Pollard (much over-hyped in my view), Shahid Afridi or Shane Watson, but Dilshan, Nannes, Pathan and Naved ul Hasan came close to selection. Here is a reminder:-

Gayle (WI), Warner (Aust), Kohli (Ind), McCullum (NZ, +), Marsh (Aust), M Hussey (Aust *), McDonald (Aust), Thomas (SA), Ashwin (Ind), Malinga (SL), Saeed Ajmal (Pak).

IPL 2011 - a 'Tournament of Success'?

As regular readers of this blog will know by now, I'm not a huge fan of Twenty20 cricket. For me, the IPL represents so much that is wrong with modern sport: short-term profit for the few at the expense of long-term development for the many. However, love it or loathe it, IPL has been an incredibly popular competition, especially for the cricket-loving Indians and their super-rich individuals keen to raise their own profiles by bankrolling the city franchises and luring most of the world's best players to India for a few months.

This year I have tried to follow the tournament more closely, catching climaxes of matches on telly when I get home from work. Congratulations to the Chennai Super Kings, of course, but I can't recall many exciting finishes at all. For all the camerawork showing close-ups of dancing girls, excited children with flags and vuvuzelas, glamorous ladies, shiny Volkswagens and even shinier Shane Warne teeth, stadia were often half-empty and TV audience figures were apparently well down on previous series.

Still, as long as companies and billionaires wish to finance and sponsor it, IPL will surely continue, and it has spawned similar tournaments in other countries, such as the irritatingly vulgarly named 'Big Bash' in Australia. A major problem for me, apart from the 'six' being rebranded the 'DHL Maximum', a wicket 'Citi Moment of Success' and even a catch has to be a 'Karbonn Kamaal Catch' (who's KK?!), is the contradiction over the whole essence of T20. It's supposed to be a fast and furious format, yet the play during IPL games is infuriatingly slow. There may be more atmosphere than in Test matches (just compare with the England v Sri Lanka Test at cold, wet and windy Cardiff this week!) but there are so many breaks. For a start, there's the blasted 'Maxx Mobile Strategic Time Out'. Why don't they be honest and call it a Maxx Mobile Extended Ad Break? There are always lengthy on-field consultations between every ball where bowling, batting and fielding strategies are discussed by players and I just want to scream at the TV: "Just get on with it!"

Anyway, rant over! There were, of course, some brilliant performances. Last year, true cricketing class won out, in that stars such as Tendulkar and Kallis reigned supreme with the bat in particular. Both played well again in 2011 but the stand-out performers have to be Chris Gayle and Lasith Malinga. The laconic West Indian opener arrived late but produced some devastating displays of powerful hitting, securing the 'Orange Cap' for hitting most runs, 608 in only 12 innings, including 44 sixes, almost twice as many as the second highest total (by MS Dhoni, of all people!). Yes, he was found out by spin bowling in the final, but when he got going in earlier stages, he was irresistible. For the Mumbai Indians, Malinga's brilliance at bowling yorkers have become legendary and he ended the tournament with 28 wickets at fewer than 6 runs an over, an incredible achievement.

The likes of Zaheer Khan, Brett Lee and Morne Morkel all had their moments, but spin bowling again proved to be a match-winning option, whether slowing down the openers or frustrating batsmen chasing targets in the closing overs. Subtle changes in pace, flight and length proved more devastating than sheer speed, the occasional in-swinger at the toes or seamer's slower ball, and I take my hat off to Daniel Vettori, Ravi Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Rahul Sharma and even old Warney himself for demonstrating the slow bowler's art. This is one area where T20 can truly benefit the more traditional forms of the sport. A few big innings from players such as Paul Valthaty deserved to make the headlines but the young Kings XI Punjab all-rounder couldn't carry that early form into the second month. Remember he has never played a first-class match in his life and he may never will.

Another positive is the improvement in fielding. One-day cricket certainly raised standards in the 1970s and now T20 has taken athleticism to new heights. Runs, wickets, strike and economy rates are all important but I reckon the Super Kings' enthusiasm, energy, skill and timing in the outfield were crucial factors in their success. Even fast bowlers like Dougie Bollinger were pulling off great stops and pouching brilliant catches on the boundary.

Much is made of the importance of international recruits to IPL, and players of the stature of Vettori, Gayle, Shaun Marsh, Mike Hussey, Adam Gilchrist, Mahela Jayawardene and Jesse Ryder do bring something different to the party. However, I reckon the competition succeeds more in showing the world the depth of talent that exists within India. Already ranked no. 1 in Tests and 50-over World champions, most of the best teams were captained by local heroes like Tendulkar, Dhoni and Gambhir. Younger stars like Raina, Vijay, Kohli and the aforementioned spinners have also shone, proving that India have plenty of talent waiting to replace the legendary Tendulkar, Dravid and Zaheer Khan. IPL will doubtless endure a few seasons more, without dodgy characters like Lalit Modi, but the organisers need to recognise that sometimes less can be better (including number of games), especially in the long run. If cricket really does need Twenty20 to attract fans and players of the future, the format should not be run into the ground to rake in big bucks for just a few years. Cricket deserves better than that, and so do the highly talented players who illuminated the past few months.