Category: England Cricket

A player can only make the list once. View the previous winners: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017

By Gary Naylor for the 99.94 Cricket Blog

The Australian (with a British passport, so watch this space) conforms to the template of an English seamer. Even his curved run up is old-school, helping to get the shoulder turn and slightly round-arm action that promotes the outswing that leads to nibble after nibble after nibble.

Surrey won Division One yet again, but more counties get a look-in – for reasons great and farcical – in these awards

The 2024 County Championship season dribbled to an end on Sunday afternoon, handshakes taken as early as was polite, while the autumn roared in. It was the longest Championship season on record – stretching from 5 April to 29 September – finishing with the favourites, Surrey, easing to victory with one round to go and Sussex winning Division Two on the final day, a thousand supporters hanging around in gloves to watch Clare Connor present the trophy.

But how quickly things move on. Rod Bransgrove announced the sale of Hampshire to the Delhi Capitals co-owners before the Spin had time to pull the season’s trophies out of the Guardian cabinet where they have been gathering dust since last year. So belatedly, and somewhat overshadowed by powerbrokers in important shoes rustling papers in mahogany boardrooms, here are the summer’s County Championship awards.

Yorkshire replace Lancashire in Division One of the Championship, with Glamorgan winning the One-Day Cup

By Gary Naylor for the 99.94 Cricket Blog

Even the weather gods seemed irritated by the scheduling of the Metro Bank One-Day Cup Final, rained off on the Sunday and held over to the reserve day, a miserable, back-to-school, Monday if ever there was one.

On a rain-lashed first day of the final round of games, Lancashire at least made hay against Worcestershire

Yorkshire go into today with a 15 point lead over Middlesex, so ten points would confirm their promotion after two seasons in Division Two. Middlesex need to win and hope Yorkshire lose, or draw with maximum points and hope Yorkshire have collected just one point.

At the miserable end of Division One, Lancashire are favourites to go down, currently 15 points behind third from bottom Notts, and 20 points behind fourth from bottom Warwickshire. Notts will be safe if they collect 10 points, Warwickshire need five. Lancs must win with max bonus points and cross their fingers.

Rory Burns’ team makes it three in a row and Sussex will play in division one next season

By Gary Naylor for the 99.94 Cricket Blog

So we’re halfway to the quiz question we’ve all been waiting for – what connects Kennington and Kansas City? All we need now is for Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce to emulate Rory Burns and Ben Foakes and deliver their Super Bowl three-peat to match Surrey’s in the County Championship. With Taylor Swift apparently indisposed on Friday, there’s still a chance for somebody to witness both hat-tricks in person.

• Daniel Gidney says agents ‘don’t care’ about county game
• Long-serving executive wants higher salaries for players

Lancashire’s chief executive has said agents are the main threat to the future of the County Championship. Daniel Gidney, one of county cricket’s longest-serving chief executives, criticised agents for not caring about the championship and instead turning players’ heads to the ever-burgeoning number of franchise tournaments.

“We need to have more of an open conversation,” Gidney said as he watched Lancashire turn the tables on Somerset at Old Trafford to improve their survival chances and give Surrey the title. “Coaches get blamed, administrators get blamed, but if you want to blame anybody, blame agents … I think the game as a whole needs to come together to find a way to support the championship.

Surrey sealed their third title in a row as Somerset’s forlorn chase against Lancashire lasted barely 30 minutes

Just popping down to speak to Somerset, as Lancashire bellow loudly in their dressing room. Elsewhere, Glamorgan are nine down, and Worcestershire seven, as the penultimate round zips towards a conclusion.

What a match! A century and 4-36 in Somerset’s crucial second innings.

• Title confirmed by Somerset’s Friday loss to Lancashire
• First side since Yorkshire in 1966-8 to win three in a row

Surrey had to wait just 43 balls on Friday morning before they were crowned the 2024 County Champions, as Somerset, their only possible challengers, slipped away like a soggy sandcastle at Old Trafford.

The Surrey squad, watching in the dressing room at the Oval, hugged and punched the air. Maybe it lacked the piquancy of winning the title on the pitch, but who was going to turn their nose up at a third Championship in a row, the first time any club have done that since Yorkshire under Brian Close in 1966, 67 and 68? Rory Burns, who has played in every one of Surrey’s 13 championship games, alongside Dom Sibley and Jordan Clark, and who passed 1,000 runs for the season against Durham this week, wins his fourth pennant as captain.

Somerset give themselves a chance in the championship and there was a poignant victory for Gloucestershire

By Gary Naylor for the 99.94 Cricket Blog

Tell 20,000 nailbiters streaming the denouement on YouTube that county cricket is outdated. Tell the grandparents, explaining to their grandkids why they have tears in their eyes, that county cricket doesn’t matter. Tell a 36-Test veteran and a wide-eyed teenager that county cricket doesn’t matter.

Defeats for Kent and Lancashire keep them in the relegation slots but Somerset still have a shot at glory

By Gary Naylor for the 99.94 Cricket Blog

With Surrey only able to draw at Trent Bridge against a resilient Nottinghamshire, Somerset needed a win to apply a little pressure to the serial champions. With their top three back in the hutch after an hour, somebody needed to bat well to avoid wasting the chance to bat first against the Kookaburra ball.

Surrey’s lead at the top of Division One is now 35 points, while Lancashire and Notts slip towards trouble

No hattrick for Worrall but Lancashire in trouble at 36-3, still 204 behind. A hard morning for poor old Rocky Flintoff but, Ali reminds me, his dad dropped a handful of catches off Wasim Akram on debut - so he’s in good company.

“Me debut was a disaster,” Flintoff said. “Played against Hampshire, down at Portsmouth on the army ground. Wasim [Akram] was playing, and Bumble [David Lloyd, then Lancashire coach], he said I was the best slip catcher he’s ever seen, I think, and I catch pigeons. I do, but in kids’ cricket!

Tawanda Muyeye gave Kent a glimmer of hope against Worcestershire, while there were runs aplenty at Bristol

My son tells me that one of the Test umpire’s is wearing carbon-plated running shoes – things have moved on a bit since Dickie Bird’s plimsolls.

They’ve made it on to the field at CLS, but Durham are without their main strike bowler Neil Wagner, who is having an MRI scan after slipping and injuring his shoulder yesterday. Ben Raine has already removed Lyndon James, for 56, after Ollie Robinson (that one) dropped him off Callum Parkinson but caught him the next over. Notts 228-9, still a mountainous 303 behind.

The Division One leaders were in dominant form again while Essex made a strong start to their delayed match against Hampshire

A classic CCLive dismissal! Mohammad Abbas, still slim as a pencil, fizzes one into Robin Das’s shinpads. Essex 12-1.

Lancashire have their first breakthrough as Dom Sibley opts not to play a shot at Will Williams. Surrey 86-1.