County Cricket: Bears Sharpen their Claws for Final Eight

The final week of Vitality Blast group fixtures was a fine advert for the chaotic and unpredictable Twenty20 format. With quarter-final places up for grabs, few counties enjoyed a clean sweep, but the Birmingham Bears and Surrey ensured progress with early victories against Derbyshire and Essex, respectively. 

Despite losing to Northamptonshire, the Bears sealed first place in the North thanks largely to Moeen Ali. His previous golden duck was forgotten as the opener reeled back the years at Edgbaston to slam nine sixes against Leicestershire in an innings of 103. That also ended the visitors’ hopes of qualification, the fourth spot snapped up by Durham courtesy of an eight-wicket drubbing of Derbyshire. 

Also on Friday, Northants met Lancashire at Old Trafford to determine which of them secured home advantage in the knockouts. New recruit George Dockrell was the surprise top-scorer as the home team racked up a formidable 201-9, but a searing 76 from Matthew Breetzke set Northants on their way to a four-wicket win to cap an all-conquering conclusion to the groups. 

A special mention to Northants ‘keeper, Lewis Mc Manus. He wasn’t the most prolific batsman of the week but, in an eight-over thrash at Chester-le-Street, he won the game by striking the only two deliveries he faced for six. That’s what I call decisive! 

Worcestershire were never really in the hunt, and lost their last two games, both right at the death. Yorkshire pipped them with three balls remaining, while Derbyshire duo Whitely and Thomson struck seventeen from Tom Taylor’s concluding over, including a scrambled single from the very last delivery. 

Reigning champions Somerset recovered some composure to roll over both Hampshire and second-place rivals Sussex, the latter with the aid of Ben Green’s 4-17. However, a home quarter-final was denied them on Friday by a barnstorming Glamorgan performance at Cardiff. Captain Kiran Carlson blitzed the county’s highest individual score, 135, more than a century of them in boundaries. Somerset proceeded to be skittled for a paltry 123 as Marnus Labuschagne, of all people, captured the final five wickets. Five days earlier, Glamorgan had been on the receiving end of a similar massacre. A Cheltenham Sunday crowd watched Jack Taylor whack an unbeaten 80 from 35 balls out if a total of 206-6, followed by a top-class bowling attack. The ever-reliable left-arm seam of David Payne starred with 3-7 from three overs. 

Elsewhere, there were centuries by Surrey’s Sam Curran against Hampshire and Michael Pepper’s 120 not out for Essex against Sussex. Pepper is the third-highest run-maker so far but his total won’t be added to. Gloucestershire’s defeat of Middlesex and Essex’s loss to Hampshire handed Jack Taylor’s outfit the fourth slot in the quarters, and a daunting trip to Edgbaston, whose spinner Danny Briggs and batsman Sam Hain were amongst the tournament’s group stage stars. 

But that’s six weeks away. In the mean-time, the school holidays will host the Hundred and Metro One Day Cup, which begin next week. As usual, I shall putr my feet up, ignore the franchise competition and focus on the county contest. 

Team of the Week:- Moeen Ali (Bir), Carlson (Gla), Hughes (Sus), Pepper (Ess), Hain (Bir), Labuschagne (Gla), McManus (Nor +), Briggs (Bir), P Brown (Der), Robinson (Sus), Payne (Glo)

Chris Rushworth in a Rush

Warwickshire must have travelled down to Hampshire anticipating a real scrap but came away celebrating an innings over the former league leaders. It seems plain wrong to write about Ed Barnard and Chris Rushworth as Warwickshire players but both played important roles in this success. James Vince easily top-scored in both Hampshire innings and he was a lone wolf watching the carnage at the other end as Rushworth took 7-38. 

There were other examples of extremely doughty day-four defence, this time preventing probable defeat. At Trent Bridge, Lancashire were heading for their first win of the summer, setting Nottinghamshire 295 in 67 overs and reducing them to 55-6, three of the wickets falling to George Balderson. In a match allowing England veterans James Anderson and Stuart Broad some competitive bowling practice, it was Balderson and Brett Hutton whole stole the bowling honours. However, it was Broad’s unbeaten three in just under an hour which ultimately denied Lancashire that much-needed victory, building upon Hutton’s 23 in 141 balls. Who needs Baz-ball to generate excitement? 

Leaders Surrey had to battle for a draw at Chelmsford, too, despite Gus Atkinson’s eight Essex wickets. With Sibley, Burns, Pope and Jacks back in then pavilion, and Simon Harmer twirling away, batsman Jamie Smith stonewalled superbly for more than 2 ½ hours, leaving Essex three wickets short. At the bottom, the order is unchanged as Somerset failed to hammer home a rare advantage over Northamptonshire at Taunton. Tom Kohler-Cadmore upped the tempo for the home side, smashing 130 at more than a run a ball but opposing skipper Sam Whiteman wisely opted for a more cautious approach, batting throughout the final day, also for 130, to prevent Somerset batting again.

Next week, Surrey welcome Middlesex across the Thames to The Oval and Warwickshire’s game against Essex promises to be a cracker.

 

In Division Two, all three fixtures were drawn. While Joe Root sits in an IPL dugout counting his cash, Jonny Bairstow had a rare outing for Yorkshire with bat and ‘keeper’s gloves watching Glamorgan’s Billy Root from behind. Glamorgan were generally on top, thanks to Michael Neser’s first-innings 7-32 and Marnus Labuschagne’s devastating170 not out to set Yorkshire an unlikely 492 target. The Aussie run machine even dared to catch Bairstow for a duck, but ex-England opener Adam Lyth showed it should be done crafting an excellent 174 from the front. However, defeat looked inevitable as the wickets tumbled but – hang on – Jordan Thompson was taking a leaf out of Bairstow’s book, punctuating defensive blocks with eleven fours and a six to end on 55, and the White Roses hanging on with the last pair at the crease. 

At Worcester, all eyes were in another Australian warm-up performer, as Steve Smith made his Sussex debut. He scored 30 but his captain Cheteshwar Pujara eased his way to another ton. A third-day washout meant that a result was virtually impossible, especially when another Asian veteran, Azhar Ali, ground out an unbeaten 103. For all these runs, it was an English seamer who produced the week’s outstanding bowling performance. Not Anderson, not Broad, nor Woakes, but Ollie Robinson. The Sussex quick took seven wickets in each innings, a career-best match aggregate of 14-117. 

He could well claim more victims in the next round, against Leicestershire, who struggled against Derbyshire in this week’s remaining game. Bowler Henry Brookes’ 6-20 was the most eye-catching turn. Derbyshire will be gunning for Gloucestershire next weekend while table-toppers Durham meet neighbours Yorkshire. 

Team of the Week:- Lyth (Yor), Balderson (Lan), Whiteman (Nor), Pujara (Sus), Vince (Ham), Labuschagne (Gla), Burgess (War +), Brookes (Der), Atkinson (Sur), Robinson (Sus), Rushworth (War)

T20 Blast off for Surrey, Sharks and Bears

The confusing melange of T20 Blast fixtures has been going for a week and a bit now and still I can’t really get a handle on it. Covid, CPL, injury and potentially greater Hundred rewards have robbed the competition of numerous international stars. Indeed I am familiar with only a small proportion of those who have signed contracts and a few of those, like the reliable big-hitter Paul Stirling of Middlesex, have already been and gone. 

In any case, the best performers of the early group exchanges have been of the home-grown variety or foreigners who were already involved in the Championship. In the North Group, reigning champs Nottinghamshire haven’t exactly set the tournament alight, despite Alex Hales’ 54-ball 96 not out against Durham and Joe Clarke’s stunning 136 to beat Northamptonshire, the highest score of the week which featured 11 sixes. 

Instead, Birmingham Bears and Lancashire Lightning are leading the way. The Warwickshire outfit have excelled with three half-centuries from Sam Hain and frugal spin bowling by Jake Lintott and Danny Briggs. Liam Livingstone’s all-round consistency and a few Jos Buttler cameos have driven the Red Roses, whose only defeat came against Worcestershire. Another England ‘keeper, Jonny Bairstow, has starred for Yorkshire, the only team so far to beat the Bears. Sadly the Leicestershire Foxes have been hunted to defeat in all their four matches. 

As of Tuesday night, the South division’s top three was identical to how it finished last season. Sussex and Surrey each enjoyed three comprehensive victories. The Sharks’ George Garton has eight chap wickets to his name but special mention should go to his slow bowling team-mate Archie Lenham. The son of a former Sussex favourite of mine, Neil, he captured three Hampshire wickets and is only sixteen! Their 100% records are on the line when they meet on Thursday. Something has to give. 

Kent Spitfires are hot on their tails, thanks in large part to Jack Leaning’s runs and Fred Klaasen’s wickets. They aren’t resting 45 year-old Darren Stevens either, and he hasn’t disappointed with the ball. Other notable performances in the first Blast week include a 5-32 against Kent by Middlesex import South African Chris Green – whose mum incidentally is Billericay-born tennis player Lisa Gould! – and three big scores from Marnus Labuschagne in Glamorgan’s colours. At this early stage he’s the Blast’s top scorer. 

Team of the Week: Clarke (Not), Livingstone (Lan), Bairstow (Yor +), Labuschagne (Gla), Hain (War), Howell (Glo), S Curran (Sur), Garton (Sus), Klaasen (Ken), Briggs (War), Lintott (War)

2020 World Cricket Team of the Year

Well, what a crap year! An unprecedented global epidemic wreaked havoc with all our lives and of course cricket suffered as much as any professional leisure activity, from village clubs to Test nations. When New Zealand beat India on 2^nd March, we could not have known it would be the last Test match for more than four months. There was a similar hiatus for ODIs and of course domestic competitions and the IPL were either cancelled or postponed until infection rates dipped by the autumn. 

It was a minor miracle that England managed to play a couple of Covid-secure series against an accommodating West Indies and Pakistan, and congratulations also to the counties who challenged not for a full County Championship but an abbreviated version climaxed by a five-day final. Just my luck that Somerset’s peerless group performance wasn’t rewarded with the Bob Willis Trophy. At least the dreaded Hundred nonsense was shelved for a year. 

At international level, major tournaments were ditched for several months but the remaining bilateral competitions did India few favours. Their first Test victory in 2020 came just days before the year ended, and New Zealand’s success has advanced them to the top of the Test rankings with Australia. England head the lists in white-ball cricket. 

As for individuals, the curtain fell on the year with Kane Williamson atop the Test table, displacing new dad Kohli and Smith who, while others tucked into turkey, experienced his first duck in the baggy green for years. Pat Cummins reached the top in bowling but in ODIs it was the turn of Trent Boult. But will they make my Team of the Year? 

As ever I have looked at first-class, List A and T20 to select a cross-format Eleven. They may not be brilliant at any one of the above but are who I consider to have been the best performers in world cricket across the whole year. 

With Tests in short supply, only Dom Sibley stands out as an opener so I’ve focussed on ODIs and T20. For me, Aaron Finch just edges out Aussie team-mate David Warner while one of my 2019 reserves, KH Rahul, is also promoted to the first XI. He may usually drop a few places in ODIs but with more than 1000 T20 runs and an ODI strike rate of over 100 he made the most of his limited opportunities. And he can also don the ‘keeper’s gloves if needed! 

In the middle-order, Virat Kohli is a rare absentee from my team of the year, but another Indian Shreyas Iyer made a considerable impact in white-ball cricket. Dawid Malan was named number one T20 batsman at the end of the year, West Indian Jermaine Blackwood was a rare beacon of light in what was another lacklustre twelve months for his side, while Dean Elgar, Henry Nicholls and Zak Crawley were also in contention. Then there’s Mumbai’s young Sarfaraz Khan who averaged an amazing 154, thanks to an unbeaten triple-century. However, Pakistan’s Babar Azam cemented his position as one of the very best all-round batsmen in the business, scoring more T20 runs than anyone. Steve Smith also makes it, but not for his Test performances. His strike rates were superior to Warner’s in ODIs and Maxwell’s in T20s. However Marnus Labuschagne, who deputised for the Aussie red-ball captain during his 2019 ban, maintained his form throughout 2020. 

For all the claims of Watling, Paine and Hope, my wicket-keeper’s spot again comes down to a straight race between Jos Buttler and Quinton de Kock. As in the previous year the South African is my pick. The England man had a decent Test summer but De Kock’s superior striking elsewhere had the edge. 

Ben Stokes may top the ICC all-rounder rankings but for a change I’m selecting his colleague Chris Woakes. He may not have the brutal batting ability of the Ginger One but took more wickets whilst scoring more limited-overs runs at a reasonable rate. 

There are so many excellent bowlers to choose from. Jimmy Anderson reached 600 Test wickets whilst his long-time England partner Stuart Broad topped 500. Nobody could match his 2020 haul of 38 at barely 14 apiece. Craig Overton was devastating for Somerset but couldn’t break back into the England set-up. All the New Zealand seamers excelled. Tim Southee achieved a career tally of 300 Test scalps, Boult and Wagner shared in the wickets but new boy Kyle Jamieson was even better in his debut Test season, definitely one to watch. Cummins, Hazlewood, Nortje and Haris Rauf are right up there and only Jofra Archer’s mediocre Test performances let him down. Jasprit Bumrah’s T20 economy rate of 6.62 is outstanding for a seamer but he’s edged out by a 6 foot 6 left-armer. No, not Mitchell Starc. Pakistan’s 20 year-old left-armer Shaheen Shah Afridi has become a giant of the game in more ways than one. Few surpassed his 2020 T20 tally of 52 wickets and his four in four balls for Hampshire was pretty special. 

I’ve space for two spinners in my Eleven and, thanks to his continued magnificence in T20, Rashid Khan of Afghanistan is one of them. Meanwhile Adam Zampa has successfully spread his wings away from the safety of mere four-over stints in T20 to the 50-over game and I wonder if he could eventually replace Nathan Lyon in the Test squad. Anything’s possible. Here’s to a safe, less socially-distanced new year. 

So to summarise, here is my 2020 Team of the Year:- 

Rahul (Ind), Finch (Aus), Babar Azam (Pak), Smith (Aus), Labuschagne (Aus), De Kock (SA +), Woakes (Eng), Broad (Eng), Rashid Khan (Afg), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pak), Zampa (Aus). 

My ‘squad replacements’ would be Elgar (SA), Buttler (Eng), Bumrah (Ind), Archer (Eng), Jamieson (NZ)

2019 Review - My Team of the Year

As most years, 2019 experienced a range of cricket-related emotions. David Warner and Steve Smith returned from their bans to mixed reviews. Warner enjoyed some success in the IPLwhile his former Test captain swapped tears for a deaf ear to barracking England fans and almost single-handedly retained the Ashes for Australia. However, possibly the world’s only genuine world-class all-rounder, Shakib al-Hasan, ended this year in disgrace, suspended for at least a year for ‘failing to report corrupt approaches’. He really ought to have known better. 

Ben Stokes escaped a jail sentence and the dial on his luck-ometer remained fixed at eleven throughout the summer. His diving deflection and strokeplay carried England to an extraordinary World Cup Final triumph at Lord’s against a desperately unfortunate New Zealand, followed by a heroic unbeaten century of eight sixes and strike-farming to save the Headingley Test. India consolidated their number one Test ranking by winning all four Test series, including rubbers in Australia and the West Indies. After losing their inaugural Test in 2018, Afghanistan claimed their first wins, against Ireland and, more significantly, Bangladesh.

Sri Lanka struggled again and, despite retaining their T20 top-rank status, Pakistan had a nightmare year in all formats. Their only series success came against Sri Lanka in 50-over cricket in their long-awaited return to home-territory internationals. Let’s hope bringing internationals home after a decade will be the springboard to a change in fortunes.

South Africa were another side in transition. The Test team was slaughtered in India, but whitewashed Sri Lanka in ODIs before a lacklustre World Cup. They also suffered a whole host of international retirements, including Amla, Steyn, Duminy and Imran Tahir. At least they ended the calendar year with a first-class victory over England. Veterans Lasith Malinga and Shoaib Malik also bade farewell to ODIs this year, and Yuvraj Singh won’t be playing at the top level again. I wouldn’t mind betting, though, that they will continue to rake in the dollars and rupees in Twenty 20.

So who makes my team of the year? 

David Warner’s return to the fold reaped immediate rewards. Whilst not playing much 50-over cricket, he nonetheless accumulated more than 2,500 runs in all formats. KL Rahul was in superb white-ball form, nobody scored more List A runs than Aaron Finch and Mayank Agarwal struck some huge scores for India, but my other opener is Rohit Sharma. Outscoring even Virat Kohli in ODIs, he also scored three centuries in six Test innings, including two in the First Test against South Africa. 

His captain Virat Kohli’s place in my end-of-year Eleven is almost guaranteed. Will he ever suffer a loss of form? Skippering the world’s undisputed top Test nation hasn’t hurt him as a batsman, averaging 68 in eight Tests and achieving strike rates of 96 and 145 in ODI and T20 cricket, respectively. However, someone scored more than four times as many first-class runs as the Indian master in 2019. Not Smith, not Root, not Williamson. No, I’m talking about Marnus Labuschagne. I confess to being ignorant of him prior to his string of hundreds for Glamorgan in the early summer, but he proved to be no mere bully of Second Division county attacks. At first deputising for Steve Smith, he went on to out-score him, ending the year with three big Test hundreds in succession against Pakistan and New Zealand advancing him to four in the ICC rankings. Including his performances for Queensland he amassed 2,703 first-class runs in 2019, way ahead of anyone else, and his leg-spin gives him an extra dimension, too.

Faf du Plessis, Ross Taylor and even Dawid Malan had a commendable twelve-month period but for my final middle-order slot I’ve leaned towards Pakistan. Last year I narrowly plumped for Babar Azam in my XI. This time there can be no doubt he deserves his spot. In an under-performing Pakistan outfit he shone strong and bright. Not only was Azam the world’s top scorer in senior T20 cricket (1,607 runs) but he also completed 2019 in a red-ball purple patch, striking three tons and a 97 in four consecutive Tests. Aged just 25, he is young enough to develop into a truly world-class all-round batsman.

My wicketkeeper-batsman is an absolute shoo-in: Quinton de Kock. Carey, Paine, Hope and Buttler each had their moments but the South African left-hander was imperious in all forms of the game. He compiled more than 2,400 runs and 80 dismissals, boasting a three-figure strike rate in ODIs. AB De Villiers may have been missed in the World Cup but De Kock  maturing nicely into a formidable member of the Proteas and T20 gun for hire.

With Shakib al-Hasan in disgrace, genuine all-rounders were in short supply. Jason Holder is a big fish in a desperately diminished Caribbean pond where he contributes a few wickets and the occasional astonishing innings; more than half his 2019 Test runs were scored in that 202 not out against England at Bridgetown. With better team-mates around him, he would be in my team of the year but for sheer personality and big-match temperament I’ve plumped for Ben Stokes. His seam bowling may not have been world-class, and he didn’t really earn his millions for the Rajasthan Royals, but for promoting cricket to the UK front pages for the first time in yonks (probably since Stokes was up in court!) the Durham man gets the nod.

No bowlers were truly outstanding. Even in his mid-thirties, Peter Siddle remained one of the world’s most skilled seamers in the four-day game, Stuart Broad and Jofra Archer led the England attack with brio, India’s Mohammed Shami was a deceptively swift and prolific swing bowler in ODIs and Kabiso Rabada was a consistent paceman for South Africa. The New Zealand seam attack of Boult, Southee, Wagner, Ferguson and Henry were always impressive as a unit, though not necessarily as individuals.

In their place I have selected the Aussie pair of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc. At 26, the former is finally fit enough to fire on all cylinders on a regular basis, combining sheer pace with control. He’s not yet Glenn McGrath but he took 59 Test wickets at just over 20 apiece, which is world-class. The left-armer Starc is supposedly weaker in the Test arena but statistically he wasn’t far behind Cummins.

Spin bowling made less impact in 2019 so there were relatively few names in contention. Simon Harmer’s 99 first-class wickets, helping Essex to another County Championship, make him impossible to ignore. Naturally Rashid Khan entered my thinking, bowling Afghanistan to an historic Test victory over Bangladesh and doing his usual thing with the white ball. However, even he took fewer T20 wickets than Imran Tahir. The South African may be almost twice the age of Rashid but his 79 victims, allied to 30 in List A fixtures, established his place at cricket’s top table. And his joyful wheeling sprint celebrations after taking wickets at the World Cup always lifted the spirits. If sport can’t do that, what’s the point?!

In conclusion, here is my 2019 Team of the Year:-

Warner (Aus), R Sharma (Ind), Babar Azam (Pak), Kohli (Ind), Labuschagne (Aus), De Kock (SA +), Stokes (Eng), Starc (Aus), Harmer (SA), Imran Tahir (SA), Cummins (Aus)

My ‘squad replacements’ would be Rahul (Ind), Buttler (Eng), Rabada (SA), Mohammed Shami (Ind)

My County Cricket Team of 2019

For many, the summer of 2019 will long be remembered for England’s World Cup success and a tight Ashes series. The prolific Steve Smith and Ben Stokes getting the runs when they mattered were the notable personalities of the international season. But what about the domestic county scene?

Somerset and Essex shared the limited-overs trophies before their rain-hit head-to-head finale in the Championship left Essex ahead on points. Their dominance was built on bowling. Batting bonus points were very thin on the ground, and Somerset’s highest first-innings total was a meagre 408. Only Yorkshire and winless Nottnghamshire – for all their new signings (Duckett and Clarke) garnered fewer batting points, and Essex were barely better. In Division Two, won easily by the undefeated Lancashire, there was a more even balance. Apart from top and bottom, it was a remarkably fluid competition, in which eight counties occupied the promotion places at some point during the season. But who were the individuals who shone on the county circuit, and who makes my 2019 County Team of the Year?

Openers:

In recent years, Surrey have dominated this position but their nightmare season allowed others to challenge. Leicestershire’s red-ball specialist Hassan Azad was the top scorer in the second tier, Adam Lyth and Daniel Bell-Drummond added useful T20 bowling contributions to their respective batting CVs and Zak Crawley caught the eye for Kent. However, two unsung openers were straightforward choices. At 30, Billy Godleman has found himself swimming in the Division Two backwaters for Derbyshire but 2019 saw him maturing into a Big Fish. Four-day cricket is his major strength and yet he anchored many a 50-over and T20 innings while others blazed away. His overall run aggregate of 1,982 was the highest in all county cricket. 

In the top flight, Dominic Sibley was a revelation. Released by Surrey two years ago, he enjoyed a sizzling summer of first-class cricket for Warwickshire. The leading Championship run-scorer, he struck five centuries – two of them ‘doubles’ - averaged just shy of 70, and at Trent Bridge a fortnight ago scored 215 not out and 109. England are watching him closely.

Middle-order:

Last season’s county star Joe Denly was largely absent from Kent on international duty, with James Vince also missing early games for Hampshire. Ian Bell was injured, James Hildreth improved his One-Day Cup totals at the expense of his four-day form, which proved costly for Somerset. However, his team-mate, 20 year-old Tom Banton, appeared out of nowhere to power his side to the RLOC crown. He was less useful in the Championship but in the short stuff he showed no fear. Glamorgan had a superb first-half of the Division Two season, buoyed by runs from Billy Root and Marnus Labuschagne. The latter contributed 1114 runs in only 10 matches before carrying forward his form into the Australian side. 

Sams Northeast and Hain were consistent across all competitions for Hampshire and Warwickshire/Birmingham, Tom Kohler-Cadmore struck some beefy innings in the Yorkshire cause, and Tom Westley, with Alastair Cook, made sure the Essex attack had something to bowl at. However, my number five must be Dawid Malan. Middlesex had a bumpy ride in 2019 but he made over 1,000 Championshp runs and almost 500 in the Blast.

All-Rounders:

My old favourite Darren Stevens seemed to be coasting into retirement for Kent when, in the penultimate fixture at Headingley, he crashed 237 at more than a run a ball then took 5-20. Too little, too late for my Team of the Year, but Kent are surely rethinking their decision to release the man who claimed 51 first-class scalps at under 18 apiece, aged 43 or not.. By contrast, Somerset’s Lewis Gregory was cruising to a place in my 2019 XI until injury intervened just as the Blast was beginning. He missed the whole of August, dammit. Liam Dawson, Wayne Parnell (in one-dayers) and Toby Roland-Jones were reliable but I’ve picked two Division Two all-rounders.

David Wiese was a fine late-order hitter for Sussex, who was explosive with bat in hand against the white ball and very useful bowling with the red one. However this was Ryan Higgins’ year. Primarily a Championship performer, he made no fewer than seven Teams of the Week, claiming almost 1,000 runs and 50 wickets to help Gloucestershire gain an unexpected promotion from Division Two. The Zimbabwe-born product of Berkshire and Middlesex is still only 24, and it will be interesting to see how he fares against superior opposition in 2020.

Wicket-keeper:

20 year-old Ollie Robinson took the Kent gloves with great aplomb in the Championship, Ben Brown had a good start with the bat for Sussex and John Simpson and Ben Cox were consistent across the summer. However, for the second successive year, my wicketkeeper of the year has to be Lancashire’s Dane Vilas. Not only did he claim more victims behind the stumps than anyone else but he also scored more runs in all competitions than anyone bar Godleman. The Red Roses must be grateful for his efforts in getting them promoted at the first time of asking.

Bowlers:-

Until injury struck, Jimmy Anderson also featured prominently in Lancashire’s early fixtures, taking him to within touching distance of 1000 career first-class wickets. Robinson (Sussex), Rushworth (Durham) and Craig Overton (Somerset) enjoyed another solid summer but late developer Ben Sanderson pips them all for the wickets which took Northamptonshire back into the top flight. Yet even he is eclipsed by Hampshire’s South African import Kyle Abbott. He was amongst the leading wicket-takers in all three formats, capping off an already great season with phenomenal match figures of 17-86 last month which destroyed Somerset’s title bid.

Prolific spinners were few and far between. Jeetan Patel picked up another 64 wickets for Warwickshire under the radar, Nathan Sowter took plenty for Middlesex in the 50-over tournament and Moeen Ali put his England woes behind him with some tasty cameos in the Blast but Kolpak-er Simon Harmer takes the biscuit. He was at his best in the crucial clashes at the end of the season, with superb spells on the T20 Finals Day and five-fors in each of his last three Championship matches, including a 7-58 against Surrey. His wickets ultimately proved decisive in Essex’s double trophy success.

To conclude, based on stats and my Teams of the Week, my County Eleven of 2019 is:-

Sibley (War), Godleman (Der), Banton (Som), Labuschagne (Gla), Malan (Mid), Vilas (Lan +), Wiese (Sus), Higgins (Glo), Abbott (Ham), Harmer (Ess), Sanderson (Nor);
12^th Man: Hain (War)

Ben Stokes creates Ashes history

Well, who needs Twenty20? England and Australia dished up one of the greatest sporting dramas since, oh, last month’s World Cup Final, demonstrating yet again why Test cricket must be savoured and protested for future generations of fans.

As a turnabout in fortunes it didn’t quite match the Headingley Test of 1981 – Botham, Willis and all that – but for overcoming home supporters’ low expectations in adversity, Headingley 2019 was just as remarkable. 38 years ago, it was a revitalised Ian Botham who, after a terrible start to his Ashes summer, rediscovered his mojo to drag England back from the brink. This time it’s Ben Stokes, although his rehabilitation from drunken thug to cricketing hero began in spectacular style at Lord’s when his innings and Super Over striking did so much to end the nation’s long wait for World Cup success.

I’m no fan of Stokes the person but there’s no denying his bravura talent on the biggest stages, at least with a bat in his hand. And yet, that unbeaten 135 notwithstanding, the Durham all-rounder was not the only man responsible for England’s victory. In the post-match euphoria amid the Stokes-centric headlines, it is easy to forget Jofra Archer’s first innings 6-45 and Saturday afternoon’s heroic resistance of the two Joes, Root and Denly.

On Friday, England were swatted away inside 28 overs for a paltry 67. Hazlewood and Cummins had bowled intelligently but the home team seemed to be batting in T20 self-destruct mode, nicking everything to Warner or Paine behind the stumps. They’d come close to winning the previous week at a rain-affected Lord’s but this dismal performance brought back the usual comments about the lost art of grinding out a score, knowing when to leave alone, when to defend and when to launch an offensive. 

Australia weren’t a whole heap better. Steve Smith’s injury replacement, Marnus Labuschagne, was the only one in a green helmet looking comfortable against the opposition attack. But when he and Lyon were last men out, England’s target of 359 looked challenging enough.

Normally such a fourth innings total would be beyond any side, but England had two and a half days in which to make them. Easy, huh? The portents were not good, especially when Roy and Burns succumbed meekly to the new ball. Root and Denly sensibly saw the side to stumps on Saturday evening but there was still plenty to do. A draw was out of the question; this was all about eight more wickets versus an additional 203 runs.

At 245-4, England looked to be cruising in the Bank Holiday heat but five wickets for 41 run left Australia in the driving seat. Ben Stokes and Jack Leach were on the rack. The Somerset spinner is no mug with the bat, as his 92 against Ireland demonstrated, but Stokes knew he’d have to play to his strength, and that’s to whack the ball as hard as he could. With 73 still required, he had nothing to lose.

Up to that point, he’d played with impressive restraint. Now was the time to display the Stokes of old. The sixes flew, but it was every dot ball faced by Leach which received cheers just as hearty from the Leeds crowd. Stokes was obviously pumped up, unable to even watch as his partner faced the fifth or sixth deliveries of overs by Cummins or Lyon. There was no intention of running quick singles; he merely squatted on his haunches, bat in both hands like a war-weary medieval knight clutching his sword, eyes focussed on his boots.

When on strike, my, how Stokes rode his luck. Aiming for the stands, three times he narrowly avoided outstretched hands, with a few very difficult diving catches spilled. The desperate LBW review for a ball clearly pitching and striking  outside leg stump cost the Aussies the match when a few overs later the umpire failed to spot a blatant leg-before; the ball would have hit middle. Justin Langer’s expression told the story. My thoughts strayed to Edgbaston, 2005 when the Aussies, featuring Langer, had been in a similar position yet were robbed just three runs from victory. With it, went that amazing series.

Nevertheless, in August 2019, all Stokes’ heroic hitting looked in vain when, with 2 needed, Stokes reverse swept to backward point then turned his back on Leach. His windmilling arms indicated that his partner had to run back to the crease. It wasn’t the greatest throw but all Nathan Lyon needed to do was catch the ball and calmly whip off the bails. With Leach stranded metres from safety, the bowler had plenty of time. He fumbled it, the chance had gone and with it the match and, in all likelihood, the Ashes.

The coup-de-grace followed shortly and one of the greatest of all Ashes Test matches was over. Just a few days after registering their lowest home Ashes total, England had achieved their highest ever fourth innings run chase. The series score reads 1-1 but I have no doubt that England will now proceed to build on their amazing good fortune and Stokes’ inspirational innings and regain the Ashes which, as the ball was lobbed to Lyon, looked certain to be Australia’s. I don’t think even the return of Steve Smith will prevent England’s sensational summer script becoming fact.

Marvellous Marnus keeps on scoring

After coming a cropper at Chelmsford last week, Somerset needed to rediscover the winning habit straightaway, and the visit of Hampshire was not an easy prospect. However, it turned out to be as one-sided as their One-Day Cup final in May, Tom Abell’s team victorious by 313 runs. Hildreth and Northeast exchanged centuries before the twin spin of Jack Leach and Dom Bess broke the back of Hampshire’s second innings.

Meanwhile Essex maintained their challenge by flattening Nottinghamshire by an innings and 123. Nick Browne and Ravi Bopara each scored their first Championship hundreds of the season and the bowlers shared the spoils. Notts did at least knuckle down in the second innings, making Essex work for their win. Simon Harmer bowled an incredible 24 maidens out of 40 overs, during which he claimed 4-35.

At Scarborough, Yorkshire left it literally to the last minute to defeat Surrey before Olivier had last man Gareth Batty caught by Lyth. The Londoners had enjoyed a slight first-innings advantage but in the second, after the openers had been removed, the rest capitulated far too easily. The White Roses’ star man was probably Will Fraine. After impressing with the Seconds, this son of Huddersfield struck his maiden ton in a week when opening batsmen seemed to prosper.

Only 14 wickets fell at Canterbury while Kent and Warwickshire shared almost 1,200 runs. Daniel Bell-Drummond’s 166 was his first century in the Championship for three years but Dominic Sibley’s 244 merely maintained his recent run of decent scores. He and Will Rhodes also put on 221 for the first wicket to ensure a bore draw was almost inevitable.

Next week, it’s Somerset’s turn to face relegation-battling Nottinghamshire while Yorkshire head south to face Essex who sit 21 points ahead of them in second place.

Glamorgan remain in pole position to replace them despite only drawing with Worcestershire at Sophia Gardens. The prolific Marnus Labuschagne sailed serenely past 1000 runs for the season, adding two further centuries to his tally. Having taken 7-92 across the first two days, Brett D’Oliveira reminded us of his all-rounder credentials by scoring 103 to keep his side in the match.

Closest rivals Lancashire also failed to win, held to a draw by Durham at Sedbergh School across the border in Cumbria. Dane Vilas contributed a couple of half-centuries but elsewhere it was a tale of two 36 year-olds. Veteran Queenslander Nathan Rimmington made 53 runs and picked up eight wickets but Lancs and England were concerned by a mid-match injury suffered by Jimmy Anderson.

Sussex are in third position despite enduring an alarming collective slump in form. Northamptonshire hammered them by 393 runs, prompting an understandable chorus of boos from the presumably paltry Hove crowd. While the batsmen laboured, Ollie Robinson could be proud of his ten wickets, but Northants seamer Ben Sanderson was the game’s outstanding performer, with 6-37 and 4-18.

The remaining fixture between Derbyshire and Middlesex was a more even contest in which the batsmen dominated. No fewer than five of Derby’s top six passed 90, but only Godleman and South African Leus du Plooy reached three figures. Pity poor Fynn Hudson-Prentice. On his Derbyshire first-class debut he was caught on 99. Ouch! Middlesex’s Dawid Malan also missed out on a milestone by one run, caught and bowled by Critchley on 199. More worrying is that his side still prop up the Division Two table, one point adrift of Leicestershire who meet Durham next week. Lancashire should overtake non-playing ‘Glambuschagne’ even if they lose at Northampton. 

Like the World Cup, things are getting interesting…..

Team of the Week: Browne (Ess), Sibley (War), Du Plooy (Der), Labuschagne (Gla), Malan (Mid), Vilas (Lan +), D’Oliviera (Wor), Rimmington (Dur), J. Overton (Som), Sanderson (Nor), Robinson (Sus)

Cook and Porter carry Essex to victory

After beating second-placed Hampshire last week, Essex went one better by defeating leaders Somerset inside three days at Chelmsford. Alastair Cook top-scored with 80, while Jamie Porter finished with match stats of 9-73 as Somerset struggled on what must have been a tough wicket for batting.

In the other top fight fixture, last year’s champions Surrey finally notched their first Championship win of the summer, overcoming Warwickshire by 74 runs. As in Essex, there were no centuries, but Mark Stoneman aggregated 104 across both innings. Sam Curran added a 52 and five wickets while Ben Foakes claimed five catches and a couple of stumpings. Surrey now face Yorkshire, Somerset meet the team they beat in the RLOC final, Hampshire and Essex have the easier challenge, playing bottom county Nottinghamshire.

There were three Division Two encounters, after which Glamorgan are unexpected leaders. Beaming with confidence, they nipped across the Severn to Bristol and returned bearing 21 points, enough to overtake Lancashire, although the latter have one game fewer. Labuschagne was again in the runs and the evergreen Aussie Michael Hogan took seven Gloucestershire wickets.

There were changes at the other end of the table, too. Sussex were shocked by lowly Durham at Hove, and it wasn’t even close. Cameron Bancroft struck 158 in the first innings and Alex Lees 143 in the second, before Ben Raine polished off the home team with 6-27, aided inevitably by Chris Rushworth. Remarkably this leaves Middlesex at the foot of the whole shebang.

The weather was less kind in the East Midlands, where Northamptonshire and Leicestershire couldn’t fashion a result. Mohammad Abbas (3-49 and 3-39) looked the classiest bowler on display, while Leicester’s opener Hassan Azad scored 92, taking his fledging first-class average above 50.

Northants now meet struggling Sussex, Worcestershire are next up for the Glammies and Durham will be fortunate to make it two in two because they face promotion favourites Lancashire. But anything can happen. Just ask Middlesex!

Team of the Week: Bancroft (Dur), Cook (Ess), Lees (Dur), Labuschagne (Gla), Wakeley (Nor), Eckersley (Dur +), Gregory (Som), Raine (Dur), Porter (Ess), Beard (Ess), Hogan(Gla)

Harmer hammers hopeless Hampshire

At last an excuse to indulge in an orgy of alliteration! While Somerset sat out the ninth round of Championship fixtures, nearest challengers Hampshire took a brutal beating on their travels to Chelmsford. Essex advanced to within seven points of Hampshire with an innings victory, for which they can thank spinner Simon Harmer. His match stats of 12 wickets for 60 tell the story and he now has more wickets than anyone else in the division.

Tunbridge Wells was the scene of Nottinghamshire’s fourth defeat of the season, going down by 285 runs to Kent. Zak Crawley and Joe Denly struck centuries while most of the bowlers contributed with wickets. Warwickshire also eased their relegation worries with a three-wicket triumph at York. Tom Kohler-Cadmore awaits punishment from the ECB for his part in the odious sex competition and he fell for a second-ball duck as his Yorkshire team-mates struggled against the seam of Oliver Hannon-Dalby and Craig Miles. Dominic Sibley added two further fifties to his season’s tally but the finish was tighter than Yorkshire could have imagined on the final morning.

In the next fortnight, Somerset face both their nearest rivals, which could go a long way in deciding the fate of the 2019 title.

In the Division Two promotion chase, Lancashire opened up a twenty-point margin with an impressive victory at Derby. England pacemen Jimmy Anderson and Graeme Onions dominated proceedings with seventeen cheap wickets between them against a side for whom Luis Reece opened both batting and bowling. Keaton Jennings needed only one ball to achieve a ten-wicket win.

Glamorgan and Sussex share second place after their respective draws. After an impressive sequence of scores for Ireland and the Seconds, Paul Stirling returned to the Middlesex First XI and duly racked up a ton, as did colleague Sam Robson. Glamorgan had little opportunity to shine but Marnus Labuschagne did his Ashes hopes no harm with another half-century and five wickets. At Kidderminster, Sussex and Worcestershire were evenly matched and no result was possible. For the visitors Chris Jordan enjoyed a reasonable all-round performance, Ben Brown added 144 more runs to his summer’s terrific total, Laurie Evans delivered a measured 113 and debutant bowler Aaron Thomason too no wickets but whacked a useful 90.

In the remaining fixture, just twenty wickets fell across four days at Leicester. The home side’s opener Hassan Azad compiled two hundreds, and shared a first innings stand of 320 with Neil Dexter on the way to 487 all out. Gloucestershire trumped that with 571, the bulk of it from the blades of Chris Dent and the in-form Ryan Higgins. Horton and Azad again accumulated 211 for the first wicket, fashioning a remarkably symmetrical partnership in which each reached three figures before declaring and agreeing the draw.

Both Sussex and Glamorgan have the opportunity this week to displace the Red Roses at the top, but only by defeating Durham and Gloucestershire, respectively.

Team of the Week: Hassan Azad (Lei), Crawley (Ken), Denly (Ken), Dexter (Lei), Labuschagne (Gla), Higgins (Glo), Cullen (Gla), Harmer (Ess), Onions (Lan), Hannon-Dalby (War), Anderson (Lan)

Spinners in Gr-Eight Form

In the week that the ICC World Cup launched at The Oval, the County Championship featured some fine performances not so much by batsmen but three reliable spinners. In particular, Edgbaston witnessed two eight-fors – both on the same climactic day. Surrey’s veteran Gareth Batty’s was completed by a hat-trick, then Jeetan Patel reeled off 31 consecutive overs, 18 of them maidens, to ensure Warwickshire registered their first Championship victory of the summer. Remarkably, champions Surrey are still waiting for theirs.

With Somerset having a week off, Yorkshire and Hampshire met at Headingley to decide which of them would take over at the top of Division One. In a rain-affected game, neither could manufacture a win, but Hampshire’s nine points took them seven clear. Gary Ballance’s 100 and Tom Kohler-Cadmore’s 69 set up a declaration but Weatherley and Rossouw batted Hants to safety. Given another couple of hours it could have been a nail-biter, but it wasn’t to be.

At Chelmsford, the Thames estuary derby resulted in a 113-run triumph for Essex. Alastair Cook found his form at last and was denied his chance of a first ever two-century match when dismissed for 90 in the second innings. Kent were set a challenging 338 on day four and, despite Bell-Drummond’s solid 81, were always looking to survive rather than win. Simon Harmer’s 8-98 proved decisive, and the result elevates Essex into the top four.

In Division Two, Worcestershire’s challenge hit a hurdle in the form of Middlesex who hitherto had been struggling. In a mostly low-scoring match, dominated by bowlers, a double-century second innings partnership by Gubbins (91) and Malan (124) was outstanding in more ways than one, swinging the fixture their way before Tim Murtagh’s 6-51 finished the job.

Lancashire could only draw with Gloucestershire at Cheltenham where the fickle weather was the only winner. There was time, however, for Matt Taylor to collect a five-for as the game petered out. Derbyshire advanced to second place by out-bowling Leicestershire over four rain-affected days. Wayne Madsen was the only man to reach 50 (just!) but you couldn’t accuse Leicestershire’s Hassan Azad of not trying. He spent a total of 400 minutes at the crease, grinding out a miserly 90 runs in the process! Tony Palladino’s 5-29 was the highlight. Now 35, the Londoner has seamed away out of the spotlight for years, garnering well over 400 first-class wickets at under 30 apiece, and it would be fitting if his wickets took Derby into the top flight.

There were rather more runs at Hove where Sussex entertained Glamorgan. Welshman Phil Salt, South African Marnus Labuschagne and local boy Ben Brown all reached three figures. However, perhaps the best performance came from the visiting opener Nick Selman. First he carried his bat for 76, then he contributed 99 to a second-wicket stand of 291 with Labuschagne.

Next up for Sussex is a trip to Lord’s, while Lancashire and Derbyshire face relatively simple tasks against Durham and Leicestershire, respectively. In theory, that is. In Division One, Surrey and Somerset met again, this time at Guildford, while Yorkshire and Essex clash at Leeds. Nottinghamshire travel to Birmingham hoping for the victory which would see them climb out of the basement.

Team of the Week: Selman (Gla), Cook (Ess), Labuschagne (Gla), Ballance (Yor), Malan (Mid), Brown (Sus +), Harmer (Ess), Patel (War), Batty (Sur), Palladino (Der), Murtagh (Mid)