Gloucestershire Glory
Congratulations to Gloucestershire for winning the Royal London Cup this weekend. The domestic one-day climax used to be the highlight of the cricketing calendar for me. Sadly in recent years it has been overshadowed by the T20 Finals Day. This is a shame because Michael Klinger’s unfancied county deserves many plaudits for going all the way and giving Gareth Batty et al a good hiding!
It has to be said that the arrival of Michael Klinger mid-season transformed the fortunes of Gloucestershire, at least in one-day formats. In particular, the Aussie’s unbeaten 137 at Headingley swept Yorkshire aside in the semis and the coaching team of Ian Harvey and Richard Dawson must have been delighted when Klinger agreed to fly back to London for the final.
Ironically, his inning lasted a mere three balls, but 39 year-old Geraint Jones stepped up to the mark in his very last match by making a brisk 50. Jade Dernbach produced a devastating hat-trick at the end to turn the game. The total of 220 didn’t look sufficient to beat a useful Surrey side, albeit missing Zafar Ansari.
Needing barely four runs an over, Surrey’s hard-hitting openers Roy and Davies reined in their attacking instincts. Even when replaced by Kumar Sangakkara and Rory Burns, preserving wickets rather than whacking sixes was the main focus. At 143-2, it seemed a sensible strategy. However, once James Taylor removed those two, the wheels came off the Surrey bus.
17 year-old Sam Curran hit 37 in 39 balls but wickets fell steadily at the other end, without enough runs in the bank. Seven from seven balls with three wickets remaining set up an exciting conclusion, with Surrey still favourites. Step forward, David Payne, who dismissed both Curran and skipper Batty with the first and third deliveries of the final over. Amazingly, Gloucestershire had won.
The retiring Jones was particularly ecstatic. Klinger spoke of this being just the beginning of a new era for the county, which has struggled just to stay alive as the developers circled to take over their Bristol ground. When Gloucestershire lost both Alex and Will Gidman last year, I really feared for their fortunes in 2015.
With a game to go, they sit sixth in Division Two, which is hardly a symbol of success. Nevertheless, their young bowling unit has shown potential. Payne, Liam Norwell, James Fuller, Taylor and all-rounder Benny Howell have scooped a lot of wickets this summer. Sadly the batting has not kept pace. Hamish Marshall and Garth Roderick have been inconsistent while openers Chris Dent and Will Tavare have not been as prolific as last season. If only both halves of the squad can click simultaneously, Gloucestershire could be contesting the promotion places. As ever these days, finances are the problem. The rich are becoming richer, while the poorer shire counties are struggling.
For all Klinger’s optimism, the reality is that the aforementioned bowlers will probably be lured away by bigger teams, possibly even those in the second tier. That’s why the likes of Essex, Northants, Leicestershire and Derbyshire never seem to escape Division Two, at last not for more than the occasional season. Interestingly, neither Gidman did well for their respective new counties in 2015, spending more time injured or in the Seconds than the first elevens. I hope Gloucester can Kling – I mean, cling - on to their young talent for a few more years. Then we can really gauge the impact of their excellent fifty-over campaign.
Showing posts with label Jade Dernbach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jade Dernbach. Show all posts
Sunday, 20 September 2015
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Maynard, Drugs and Cricket
The death last year of Tom Maynard robbed the sport of an exciting young cricketer but the sickening details, briefly aired in the media, were swiftly brushed under the carpet. Until this week's inquest. The sequence of events leading up to his death makes for depressing reading on so many levels.
Firstly, he and his Surrey team-mates Jade Dernbach and Rory Hamilton-Brown were in a pub getting smashed. Secondly, they went back to his home with some girls and got even more hammered. Maynard then left his home after 3am and rang his girlfriend while driving a high-performance Mercedes. Police spotted him driving erratically (surprise, surprise!), tried to stop him only for him to evade his pursuers by jumping on a live electrified rail. We don't know whether electrocution, or the impact from an Underground train, caused Maynard's death but either way it's an unpleasant way to go.
Of course Tom Maynard's life should not be defined by the manner of his death but the culture amongst some professional sportsmen of binge drinking can't be excused by the old chestnuts; "it's only high jinks", "he's young, needs to let his hair down" or "lots of blokes his age do it these days". What would have been the reaction had Maynard, while four times the legal alcohol limit and high on Ecstasy and cocaine, ploughed into a group of people on the pavement or swerved into into another car killing the occupants? Thank God it was so late at night and nobody else was hurt.
Yes, maybe lots of young people do take drugs, get pissed and drive their car but that doesn't make it right. And when that young person is a top sportsman and a potential role model to millions of children, it becomes even more dangerous. Factor in the bad publicity it brings to cricket, and it is no wonder that the ECB, with the players' union PCA, has announced plans to increase the number of drugs tests it carries out. Hopefully this will include out-of-competition examinations for so-called recreational drugs, substances which may not enhance performance on the pitch but are known to affect mental abilities and are, let's face it, illegal.
Michael Vaughan and Ian Bell have spoken in favour of this move, sending an important message to other current or future cricketers that the sport is cleaning up its act. Blimey, if football can do it, surely cricket can! The only sad part of the ECB statement was its rider that it accepts that Maynard's drug taking was a one-off, despite the medical evidence that he had almost certainly been a frequent coke-sniffer for months. His mates and girlfriend said in the coroner's court that they had been unaware of Tom Maynard's drug abuse. Hmm. Well, I leave them to face their own consciences.
The batsman's demise last June understandably left Surrey CCC in a state of turmoil and grief. Flatmate and county skipper Hamilton-Brown moved on to Sussex soon afterwards and both he and Dernbach must have felt particularly bad about Tom's death as they had been drinking with him and failed to stop him heading for his car and driving off in what must have been a dreadful state.
It's now the ECB and PCA's turn to show leadership and demonstrate to cricket players and fans that you can be one of the lads and a responsible role model, so that something positive may come from Tom Maynard's shocking death.
Firstly, he and his Surrey team-mates Jade Dernbach and Rory Hamilton-Brown were in a pub getting smashed. Secondly, they went back to his home with some girls and got even more hammered. Maynard then left his home after 3am and rang his girlfriend while driving a high-performance Mercedes. Police spotted him driving erratically (surprise, surprise!), tried to stop him only for him to evade his pursuers by jumping on a live electrified rail. We don't know whether electrocution, or the impact from an Underground train, caused Maynard's death but either way it's an unpleasant way to go.
Of course Tom Maynard's life should not be defined by the manner of his death but the culture amongst some professional sportsmen of binge drinking can't be excused by the old chestnuts; "it's only high jinks", "he's young, needs to let his hair down" or "lots of blokes his age do it these days". What would have been the reaction had Maynard, while four times the legal alcohol limit and high on Ecstasy and cocaine, ploughed into a group of people on the pavement or swerved into into another car killing the occupants? Thank God it was so late at night and nobody else was hurt.
Yes, maybe lots of young people do take drugs, get pissed and drive their car but that doesn't make it right. And when that young person is a top sportsman and a potential role model to millions of children, it becomes even more dangerous. Factor in the bad publicity it brings to cricket, and it is no wonder that the ECB, with the players' union PCA, has announced plans to increase the number of drugs tests it carries out. Hopefully this will include out-of-competition examinations for so-called recreational drugs, substances which may not enhance performance on the pitch but are known to affect mental abilities and are, let's face it, illegal.
Michael Vaughan and Ian Bell have spoken in favour of this move, sending an important message to other current or future cricketers that the sport is cleaning up its act. Blimey, if football can do it, surely cricket can! The only sad part of the ECB statement was its rider that it accepts that Maynard's drug taking was a one-off, despite the medical evidence that he had almost certainly been a frequent coke-sniffer for months. His mates and girlfriend said in the coroner's court that they had been unaware of Tom Maynard's drug abuse. Hmm. Well, I leave them to face their own consciences.
The batsman's demise last June understandably left Surrey CCC in a state of turmoil and grief. Flatmate and county skipper Hamilton-Brown moved on to Sussex soon afterwards and both he and Dernbach must have felt particularly bad about Tom's death as they had been drinking with him and failed to stop him heading for his car and driving off in what must have been a dreadful state.
It's now the ECB and PCA's turn to show leadership and demonstrate to cricket players and fans that you can be one of the lads and a responsible role model, so that something positive may come from Tom Maynard's shocking death.
Friday, 15 February 2013
England take the T20 series
So England are the series winners after storming the decider against New Zealand by ten wickets. What can we learn from this? That England are back to their T20 best? That the Black Caps are useless? Of course not. This is Twenty 20! Anything can happen in any given match.
Last week everyone was singing the praises of Stuart Broad, whose 4-24 took him to the top of England's all-time (i.e. seven years!) wicket-taking table, along with the middle-order striking of Luke Wright and Eoin Morgan. Four days later at Hamilton, the England skipper's four overs went for a humbling 53 runs, Wright was out first ball and all eyes were on NZ's B-Mac, blazing a match-winning 74. Today, fortunes swung firmly back in the tourists' favour. Broad marked the occasion with 3-15, and the openers Hales and Lumb cruised to victory with more than seven overs to spare.
If there were to be a fourth crash-bang contest, no doubt we'd be extolling the virtues of Guptill, Taylor and Boult and castigating Broad, Finn and Tredwell! That is the nature of the format. It's why the last two world champions were England and the West Indies, not India, Australia or South Africa.
Having slammed T20 for being a bastardised version of cricket, of course I have to accept that the format does favour a certain type of player: strong, confident batsmen, pacemen adept at yorkers, spinners not afraid to mix it up a bit and athletic fielders with quick eyes, feet and arms. England's batsmen are generally a young lot and, while the likes of Bell, Pietersen, Bopara and even Cook are perfectly able to score at a rate of 120+, selectors are willing to push forward Hales, Buttler and cool-headed Morgan. It may also help them gain confidence for the next 50-over World Cup. It certainly won't prepare them for the Ashes! As a Somerset fan, I have long been aware of young 'keeper Jos and his ability to fashion extra cover sixes from good length balls without breaking sweat. However, it's a while since he performed strongly in the Championship. Team-mate and England discard Kieswetter has the edge in the first-class game.
What about the bowlers? Again, a top-class bowler can do the business in any format. Finn and Broad are fine players, and the latter has the added advantage of being able to throw the bat effectively should the men above him fail. Jade Dernbach was the most consistent player on either side in this series, but I don't mean that as praise. Figures of 0-33, 3-38 and 3-36 wouldn't look bad in a Test match but always conceding more than eight an over is hardly a virtue in T20, despite taking some wickets. Tredwell and Patel are no challengers to Swann in the spin stakes, but Wright is OK as an all-rounder.
Given the full availability of all contenders, how many of the Wellington side would walk into England's Test side? Er, Finn and, er, that's it! As for New Zealand, their XI had more of an all-format look about it. However, I still don't understand James Franklin. A very successful bowling all-rounder in first-class domestic cricket, he has failed miserably in Tests and, given his ability to bat AND bowl, he can't help be picked at T20, but again flatters to deceive.
The past week's fixtures can't really predict the outcome of the ODI and Test series, although it always helps the confidence to enter the fray with a win under the belt. Provided Taylor, Guptill and McCullum can be silenced, it should be plain sailing for England, even if Dernbach bowls first change!
Last week everyone was singing the praises of Stuart Broad, whose 4-24 took him to the top of England's all-time (i.e. seven years!) wicket-taking table, along with the middle-order striking of Luke Wright and Eoin Morgan. Four days later at Hamilton, the England skipper's four overs went for a humbling 53 runs, Wright was out first ball and all eyes were on NZ's B-Mac, blazing a match-winning 74. Today, fortunes swung firmly back in the tourists' favour. Broad marked the occasion with 3-15, and the openers Hales and Lumb cruised to victory with more than seven overs to spare.
If there were to be a fourth crash-bang contest, no doubt we'd be extolling the virtues of Guptill, Taylor and Boult and castigating Broad, Finn and Tredwell! That is the nature of the format. It's why the last two world champions were England and the West Indies, not India, Australia or South Africa.
Having slammed T20 for being a bastardised version of cricket, of course I have to accept that the format does favour a certain type of player: strong, confident batsmen, pacemen adept at yorkers, spinners not afraid to mix it up a bit and athletic fielders with quick eyes, feet and arms. England's batsmen are generally a young lot and, while the likes of Bell, Pietersen, Bopara and even Cook are perfectly able to score at a rate of 120+, selectors are willing to push forward Hales, Buttler and cool-headed Morgan. It may also help them gain confidence for the next 50-over World Cup. It certainly won't prepare them for the Ashes! As a Somerset fan, I have long been aware of young 'keeper Jos and his ability to fashion extra cover sixes from good length balls without breaking sweat. However, it's a while since he performed strongly in the Championship. Team-mate and England discard Kieswetter has the edge in the first-class game.
What about the bowlers? Again, a top-class bowler can do the business in any format. Finn and Broad are fine players, and the latter has the added advantage of being able to throw the bat effectively should the men above him fail. Jade Dernbach was the most consistent player on either side in this series, but I don't mean that as praise. Figures of 0-33, 3-38 and 3-36 wouldn't look bad in a Test match but always conceding more than eight an over is hardly a virtue in T20, despite taking some wickets. Tredwell and Patel are no challengers to Swann in the spin stakes, but Wright is OK as an all-rounder.
Given the full availability of all contenders, how many of the Wellington side would walk into England's Test side? Er, Finn and, er, that's it! As for New Zealand, their XI had more of an all-format look about it. However, I still don't understand James Franklin. A very successful bowling all-rounder in first-class domestic cricket, he has failed miserably in Tests and, given his ability to bat AND bowl, he can't help be picked at T20, but again flatters to deceive.
The past week's fixtures can't really predict the outcome of the ODI and Test series, although it always helps the confidence to enter the fray with a win under the belt. Provided Taylor, Guptill and McCullum can be silenced, it should be plain sailing for England, even if Dernbach bowls first change!
Sunday, 25 September 2011
My Team of the Season - The Bowlers
The other day, I revealed the top six in my team of the English season which ended last week. Now for the rest of the Eleven which to me summed up the most notable players and performances across the whole summer.
I don't think it was a vintage year for all-rounders. Samit Patel enjoyed a good start to the summer for Nottinghamshire and, although he faded a bit, it was enough to get him back into the England set-up and indeed he played in this week's T20 internationals against the West Indies. Ravi Bopara also returned to the England fold but, apart from the first Windies T20I, it was as a batsman only. Durham's Ian Blackwell was solid but unspectacular while Gareth Berg produced some great all-round performances early and late in the summer, while missing out on most of the matches in between.
Mike Yardy was a welcome face back on the county circuit following his bout of depression last winter and he scored some telling first-class hundreds and took some one-day wickets for Sussex. Darren Stevens and Rikki Clarke were dependable as ever but my man for number seven is Chris Woakes. he's not normally thought of as an all-rounder but I rate him higher in those terms as Stuart Broad or Tim Bresnan. Maybe the England selectors want to see more of his bowling before giving him a chance. In only 11 Championship games for Warwickshire, he took 56 wickets at 21.78, while averaging 48 with the bat. OK, so he was less impressive in one-dayers but his consistent first-class cricket performances give him the edge for me.
My Team of the Season is not intended to set the standard as a world-beater, more as a clutch of individuals who lit up the English cricket scene between April and September. That is why the Championship's winning captain and the leading wicket-taker force their way into my side. David Masters is the epitome of a county pro, now at Essex, and his steady fast-medium pacers have taken wickets wherever he has played. 2011 saw him add more than ninety to his first-class career record, including 8-10 in a single innings against Leicestershire. At 37, Glen Chapple is four years older and has been a Lancashire stalwart for twenty seasons, While he was largely spared one-day duties this summer, he captured 57 scalps in the Championship at under 20 apiece and his enthusiastic captaincy also played a major part in his county's successful title challenge.
If I were to pick my other seamer purely on first-class performances, the leading contenders would have to include the evergreen Tim Murtagh (Middlesex), Andre Adams (Notts), Ryan Sidebottom (Yorkshire), Tim Linley (Surrey), Jon Lewis (Gloucs) and the one Sri Lankan to emerge from the summer with credit, Chaminda Vaas (Northants). However, I am going for a young bowler who earned his England spurs through his excellent limited-over ability and sheer pace, Jade Dernbach. With a little more consistency in the first-class format, he merits a spot amongst those pressing Anderson, Broad, Tremlett, Finn and Bresnan for a Test place.
Finally, amongst the myriad of tyro spinners advancing their careers through the medium of T20 (Borthwick and Briggs spring to mind), there are two who challenge for the final place in my Summer 2011 team. Monty Panesar is the forgotten man, who not five years ago was one of the best spinners in the world but who is now rebulding his career at Sussex. He bowled more than 750 overs in the Championship for 69 wickets, augmented by some economic contributions in CB40 and T20. However, my slow bowler of the year is Gary Keedy. He missed most of 2010 through injury but his availability for the past year made the difference in Lancashire's title push. In T20, his economy rate was under six, and he took 20 wickets at 17. He made little impression in the CB40 competition but in the four-day fixtures, emerged with 63 wickets at under 24 apiece. He didn't blast opposition away in single innings blitzes like team-mate Simon Kerrigan but he was always there nagging away at batsmen.
So there we have it. My complete Team of the Season reads: Cook, Trescothick, Hales, Bell, Taylor, Bairstow (+), Woakes, Chapple, Dernbach, Masters, Keedy. It was nice to see a mix of old and young making their mark on the season, and I hope to see more of the same in 2012.
I don't think it was a vintage year for all-rounders. Samit Patel enjoyed a good start to the summer for Nottinghamshire and, although he faded a bit, it was enough to get him back into the England set-up and indeed he played in this week's T20 internationals against the West Indies. Ravi Bopara also returned to the England fold but, apart from the first Windies T20I, it was as a batsman only. Durham's Ian Blackwell was solid but unspectacular while Gareth Berg produced some great all-round performances early and late in the summer, while missing out on most of the matches in between.
Mike Yardy was a welcome face back on the county circuit following his bout of depression last winter and he scored some telling first-class hundreds and took some one-day wickets for Sussex. Darren Stevens and Rikki Clarke were dependable as ever but my man for number seven is Chris Woakes. he's not normally thought of as an all-rounder but I rate him higher in those terms as Stuart Broad or Tim Bresnan. Maybe the England selectors want to see more of his bowling before giving him a chance. In only 11 Championship games for Warwickshire, he took 56 wickets at 21.78, while averaging 48 with the bat. OK, so he was less impressive in one-dayers but his consistent first-class cricket performances give him the edge for me.
My Team of the Season is not intended to set the standard as a world-beater, more as a clutch of individuals who lit up the English cricket scene between April and September. That is why the Championship's winning captain and the leading wicket-taker force their way into my side. David Masters is the epitome of a county pro, now at Essex, and his steady fast-medium pacers have taken wickets wherever he has played. 2011 saw him add more than ninety to his first-class career record, including 8-10 in a single innings against Leicestershire. At 37, Glen Chapple is four years older and has been a Lancashire stalwart for twenty seasons, While he was largely spared one-day duties this summer, he captured 57 scalps in the Championship at under 20 apiece and his enthusiastic captaincy also played a major part in his county's successful title challenge.
If I were to pick my other seamer purely on first-class performances, the leading contenders would have to include the evergreen Tim Murtagh (Middlesex), Andre Adams (Notts), Ryan Sidebottom (Yorkshire), Tim Linley (Surrey), Jon Lewis (Gloucs) and the one Sri Lankan to emerge from the summer with credit, Chaminda Vaas (Northants). However, I am going for a young bowler who earned his England spurs through his excellent limited-over ability and sheer pace, Jade Dernbach. With a little more consistency in the first-class format, he merits a spot amongst those pressing Anderson, Broad, Tremlett, Finn and Bresnan for a Test place.
Finally, amongst the myriad of tyro spinners advancing their careers through the medium of T20 (Borthwick and Briggs spring to mind), there are two who challenge for the final place in my Summer 2011 team. Monty Panesar is the forgotten man, who not five years ago was one of the best spinners in the world but who is now rebulding his career at Sussex. He bowled more than 750 overs in the Championship for 69 wickets, augmented by some economic contributions in CB40 and T20. However, my slow bowler of the year is Gary Keedy. He missed most of 2010 through injury but his availability for the past year made the difference in Lancashire's title push. In T20, his economy rate was under six, and he took 20 wickets at 17. He made little impression in the CB40 competition but in the four-day fixtures, emerged with 63 wickets at under 24 apiece. He didn't blast opposition away in single innings blitzes like team-mate Simon Kerrigan but he was always there nagging away at batsmen.
So there we have it. My complete Team of the Season reads: Cook, Trescothick, Hales, Bell, Taylor, Bairstow (+), Woakes, Chapple, Dernbach, Masters, Keedy. It was nice to see a mix of old and young making their mark on the season, and I hope to see more of the same in 2012.
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