The Reverse Sweep

County Championship XI of the week #1

Martin Guptill (Derbyshire) - With his side just 22 runs ahead on 1st innings, the New Zealander struck a brisk 137 to help set up a win and prove there is more to him than the safe pair of hands that probably helped end the Test career of Phil Hughes.

Billy Godleman (Essex) - Equalled his career best score with a patient 130 to put Essex in charge against a weak Gloucestershire side at Chelmsford. 

Luke Wells (Sussex) - The 21 year old's fourth first-class hundred may have been in vain at The Oval, but Mark Ramprakash was so impressed that not only did he compare Wells to Alastair Cook, but added that Wells was "possibly better technically".

Riki Wessels (Nottinghamshire) - The budding web site entrepreneur showed he can bat a bit too by striking his first Championship hundred for Notts as his side recovered to beat Worcestershire after being bowled out on the opening day for 118. The extra publicity should do his flourishing business the world of good - perhaps Alan Sugar should consider donning the pads too?

Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire) - He may not be the finished article with the gloves, but his brilliant hundred at Headingley not only helped save Yorkshire against Kent but confirmed he is a real contender for the number six spot in England's Test side.

Tom Maynard (Surrey) - Revived Surrey's 1st innings with a brisk 86 not out and then added a crucial 136 with Rory Hamilton-Brown in the 2nd innings to give his side a decisive advantage. A good start to the season for one of our XI to watch. 

Mat Coles (Kent) - Doesn't get in for his supposed strongest suit with the ball, but for his maiden first-class hundred from number nine at Headingley. His all-round aspirations appear to be well-founded. 

David Wainwright (Derbyshire) - Starred in his first game since moving from Headingley by bowling his side to victory over Northants with figures of six for 33.  

Vernon Philander (Somerset) - It was hardly surprising that the man who takes wickets for fun at Test level opened his Somerset account with a five wicket haul at Taunton. Ended up with match figures of seven for 81 from 38 overs. 

Robbie Joesph (Leicestershire) - Took 12 wickets on his debut for the County as Leicestershire recovered from losing wickets to the first two balls of the match at Grace Road and equal the number of championship wins they managed in the entire season last year.

George Dockrell (Somerset) - Only appeared once last season, but an immaculate exhibition of spin bowling, which saw him take six for 27 in 20.1 overs and eight wickets in the match against Middlesex at Taunton means we will see much more of the talented Irishman in 2012.

Where next?

County Championship preview: Our XI to watch in 2012

Read our Division 1 previews: Durham, Lancashire, Middlesex, Notts, Somerset, Surrey, Sussex, Warwickshire and Worcestershire

Division 2 previews: Derbyshire, Essex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

A Year To Forget: County Championship Flops XI of the season

 
In our column last week for All Out Cricket, we named our County Championship XI of the summer but this only tells half the tale.

Who were the fool guys? Who flattered to deceive? Who had a downright disaster? Who flopped like Waterworld?

Yes, you’ve guessed it a County Championship XI of those who had a year to forget.

Yorkshire fans may want to look away now...

Where next?

Where next?

County Cricket 2011 Heroes: Glen Chapple

County Cricket 2011 Heroes: The Tiflex cricket ball

County Cricket 2011 Heroes: Marcus Trescothick

County Cricket 2011 Heroes: Rory Hamilton-Brown

County Cricket 2011 Heroes: Michael Carberry

County Championship XI of the season

County Championship Division 1 XI of the season

County Championship Division 2 XI of the season

Read all of our County Cricket coverage

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

County Championship XI of the week #5

 
Yet again our County Championship XI of the week features a number of promising youngsters, suggesting the England cricket side looks set to be in rude health for some time yet; and Amen to that:

Joe Root (Yorkshire) – The 20 year old continues to impress even if he failed by just five runs to record his maiden first-class hundred against the reigning county champions at Trent Bridge.

Luke Wells (Sussex) – His maiden first-class ton helped Sussex chase down 308 to beat Durham and now his second just two weeks later secured a draw at the Rose Bowl.

Mark Ramprakash (Surrey) – Looked like he’d never been away with 37 and 91 on an Oval green top. Even at 41, his powers show no sign of dimming.

Chris Taylor (Gloucestershire) – Scored 117 and 60 to help end Middlesex’s 100% start to the season in a draw at Bristol.

Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire) – After 58 first-class innings including 17 scores of 50 plus, 21 year old Bairstow finally reached three figures at Trent Bridge and promptly turned his maiden ton into a double.

James Vince (Hampshire) – The 20 year old Michael Vaughan clone registered a stylish second career ton against Sussex at the Rose Bowl.

Craig Kieswetter (Somerset) – After a poor domestic season in 2010, Kieswetter continued his resurgence with 117 on an untypically testing Taunton pitch to set up victory over Worcestershire.

Stuart Meaker (Surrey) – Took eight wickets in the match as Surrey’s pace battery proved too much for Leicestershire at The Oval.

Gemaal Hussain (Somerset) – Finally repaid some of the faith shown by his new county for securing his services over the winter by taking a career best six for 33 to propel Somerset to victory over Worcestershire.

Simon Kerrigan (Lancashire) – Made excellent use of a poor Edgbaston pitch to take seven wickets in the match including five for seven in the 2nd innings as the slow left-armer made a bang on his first Championship appearance of the summer.

Jade Dernbach (Surrey) – Surrey’s gamble to prepare (or should that be underprepare?) a green Oval deck paid off as one of our ten to watch in 2011 took seven wickets in the match to spearhead his side to the win that lifted them off the bottom of the table.

Where next?

County Championship XI of the week #4

County Championship XI of the week #3

County Championship XI of the week #2

County Championship XI of the week #1

Ten to watch in 2011: Adam Lyth, Jade Dernbach,  Rory Hamilton-Brown, Samit Patel, Alex Hales, Danny Briggs, Ben Stokes, James Harris, Jos Buttler, Adil Rashid

County Championship Previews - Division 2: Derbyshire, Essex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire,  Kent,  Leicestershire,  Middlesex,  Northamptonshire,  Surrey

County Championship Previews - Division 1:  Yorkshire,  Worcestershire,  Warwickshire, Sussex,  Somerset,  Nottinghamshire,  Lancashire,  Hampshire,  Durham

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

County Championship Preview - Division 2: Surrey

 
Finishing seventh last summer would have come as a severe disappointment after heavy investment the previous winter. Surrey have again welcomed several new recruits for 2011 in Tom Maynard, Yasir Arafat, Kevin Pietersen and Zander de Bruyn so will the forthcoming summer see an upturn in fortunes?

Strengths

A top six comprising Mark Ramprakash, Pietersen, de Bruyn, the immensely promising Jason Roy, Steven Davies and head prefect Rory Hamilton-Brown looks impressive, although Surrey fans shouldn’t expect to see too much of KP.

The bowling looks good too with Chris Tremlett, Yasir Arafat, Jade Dernbach, Gareth Batty and Stuart Meaker plus having Chris Jordan back from injury will be like having another new player.

Weaknesses

Can this collection of individuals be gelled into a team? Tremlett, Pietersen and possibly Davies and Dernbach are likely to miss several games due to international duty.

Main man

If his back holds up expect the imperious Mark Ramprakash to continue his astonishing exploits with the bat. Enjoy it whilst you can, because even this evergreen 41 year old cannot go on much longer. Surely?

Look out for…

KP getting lost en route from Chelsea to The Oval and heaven forbid if he has to get to Guildford – that’s nearly in Hampshire!

Prediction

3rd – A hugely improved season but just missing out on promotion

Where next?

County Championship Previews - Division 2: Derbyshire, Essex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire,  Kent,  Leicestershire,  Middlesex,  Northamptonshire

County Championship Previews - Division 1:  Yorkshire,  Worcestershire,  Warwickshire, Sussex,  Somerset,  Nottinghamshire,  Lancashire,  Hampshire,  Durham

2010 County XI of the season

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

An XI of Asian Cricketers let down (for the most part) by England

 
The successors to Ranjitsinhji and Duleepsinhji and the contemporaries of Nasser Hussain have for the most part not been dealt a good hand by the England selectors.

Monty Panesar was given plenty of opportunities before being usurped by Graeme Swann and Ajmal Shahzad may have made the cut for the World Cup.

Here is an XI of cricketers of Asian origin who have fallen by the wayside over the last decade or so. Some have been tried, found not to be good enough and discarded. Others have not helped themselves at times like the talented but unfit Samit Patel, but perhaps some could have been handled better by the selectors:

1. Vikram Solanki (Captain)– Indian born Solanki may have 51 ODI caps, but the selectors never seemed to fully trust this silky strokemaker and quite brilliant fielder. His 13 match streak in 2003, including a sparkling century against South Africa, was his longest consecutive stint in the side. Never got a Test opportunity, but perhaps should have.

2. Owais Shah – Finally nailed down a regular spot in the ODI side in 2007 after being jettisoned after 15 matches earlier in the decade. In his second coming, Shah averaged 35 in 53 matches and seemed set to be a fixture in the side for some time to come after a brilliant 98 against South Africa in the Champions Trophy of 2009. But question marks about his fielding, running between the wickets and propensity to be overwhelmed by nerves did for him in the end. All these failings were on show in his short six game Test career, which fell away after a promising 88 and 38 on debut against India.   

3. Mark Ramprakash – The most talented English batsman of his generation fell foul of his own failings, but also those of the selectors who dropped him more times than Kamran Akmal let Mike Hussey off the hook in the Sydney Test of 2010. Ramprakash played his last Test in 2002 at the age of 32, but despite his astonishing consistency and mountain of runs for Surrey since, the selectors have resisted the temptation to recall him one more time.

4. Aftab Habib– A surprise pick during the 1999 home series with New Zealand, which England lost to slide to the bottom of the test rankings, Habib was here today and gone tomorrow with just 26 runs in his three innings and falls into the category of those that weren't good enough.

5. Usman Afzaal– One that fell victim to the selectors aversion to those of a more portly nature, Afzaal admittedly didn’t set the world alight with just 83 runs in three tests during the 2001 Ashes series - although he did score a classy fifty at The Oval. He didn’t impress in other ways too. The Aussies were non-plussed by his cockiness and the flashy sponsored car that he rocked up in for his debut.

6. Ravi Bopara– To be frank, it is amazing that Luke Wright is ahead in the pecking order, but the immensely talented Bopara has become used to life on the fringes since bombing in the 2009 Ashes series. Three successive hundreds against the West Indies convinced the selectors that Bopara was the man to bat at three against Australia, when it was obvious that five or six were more suited to him. In one day cricket, he can fill a multitude of roles as an opener, late order hitter, useful bowler and electric fielder. May get a second coming in Tests, thanks to Paul Collingwood’s retirement.

7. Samit Patel – Patel did well in his 11 ODI in 2008 and in our view is a better bowler and batsman than both Tredwell and Yardy. However, Patel has fallen foul of England’s dislike of lardy cricketers and to be fair given that he reportedly failed a fitness test before the final XV for the World Cup was chosen, he only has himself to blame. That said, maybe it is better to have someone in the side that eats pies, rather than bowls them.

8. Adil Rashid– Nothing excites selectors and fans alike as a world-class leg-spinner, and Rashid has the potential to be just that. Selected for the 2009 World T20, Rashid did reasonably well. Since then though he has been messed about - most famously when withdrawn after one expensive over in Alastair Cook's farcical debut as captain in a T20 match against South Africa in 2009. Suddenly the England hierarchy lost faith and Tredwell leapfrogged Rashid for the tour of Bangladesh - surely the ideal place to blood the young leg spinner. Time is on Rashid’s side however, as he is still only 22.

9. Kabir Ali– It is perplexing that Kabir wasn’t given more than the solitary Test after taken five wickets on debut against South Africa at Headingley in 2003. He also performed reasonably well in his 14 ODI, taking 20 wickets at a shade over 34. However, his economy rate was over six runs per over and the final straw came when he was smashed for 72 off just six overs by Jayasuriya and Tharanga in 2006.

10. Sajid Mahmood– He may be quick, but despite being a cousin of boxer Amir Khan, Mahmood invariably lacks the killer punch and can make Harmison and Mitchell Johnson look accurate – such is his waywardness at times. Like many on this list however, Mahmood was mistreated by the selectors. After impressing against Sri Lanka and Pakistan in the summer of 2006, he was promptly dropped for the Ashes series opener at Brisbane. When he was finally picked both form and confidence had gone and so was Mahmood just two tests later. He did make a brief limited overs comeback in South Africa in 2009, but his performances lacked the promise of his initial foray into international cricket.

11. Amjad Khan– Another of England’s one cap wonders, the Danish born Amjad played his only Test at Port-of-Spain in 2009 and took 1/122. A subsequent knee injury and loss of form means that others have leapfrogged him in the pecking order and barring a minor miracle, is unlikely to play for his adopted country again.

Where next?

How well are the England selectors handling Adil Rashid?

Mark Ramprakash: English cricket’s great lost talent

Reaction to England’s World Cup Squad – Prior the victor, but where is Bopara?

Ravi Bopara – England’s Michael Hussey

The Worst Test XI of 2010

The Best Test XI of 2010

Check out all our Reverse Sweep heroes and zeroes including amongst others Graeme Swann, Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Shoaib Malik, Ijaz Butt, Imran Khan, VVS Laxman and Mushtaq Ahmed

Follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

2nd Test: Adelaide - Preview: Can England make psychological blows count?

 
England's fightback at Brisbane was nothing short of astounding as they turned likely defeat into a psychologically advantageous draw. Like most England fans, we were thinking "here we go again", as Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook just survived to the close on the end of the 3rd day still over 200 runs behind.

But we were wrong and the 'Gabbatoir' became Australia's slaughterhouse over the next two days as first Strauss and Cook, and then Cook and Trott wrote their way into the record books. How could we ever have doubted you, England?

If a scorecard of 517/1 gave England the edge at the Gabba, then the subsequent dropping of Australia's misfiring attack leader Mitchell Johnson is another psychological blow for Ricky Ponting and his men. Whilst Johnson's performance in Brisbane was dreadful, removing him from the team after one test suggests there is panic and uncertainty in the Australian camp.

Adelaide is likely to be another paradise for batsmen to fill their boots and for bowlers to toil and if Brisbane taught as anything, it is that both teams are going to struggle to take 20 wickets on good pitches. That said, Australia were unable to make scoreboard pressure count in England's second innings at The Gabba and it will be interesting to see what happens if the roles are reversed in Adelaide.

For Australia, Marcus North has taken Michael Hussey's stool in the last chance saloon and there are question marks as to whether Doug Bollinger and/or Ryan Harris will come in. Michael Clarke also looked out of sorts in Brisbane and Xavier Doherty probably has just this match left to show that he is a better bowler than a first-class average of 50 suggests.

England look in better shape. The top three scored hundreds in Brisbane and both Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell looked in fine fettle. England's seamers looked sharper than their Australian counterparts too - Peter Siddle apart - and James Anderson showed that he is a completely different bowler from four years ago. England's only real problem centres on Swann, who had a poor Test to bring back all the question marks over the effectiveness of off-spinners on Australian wickets.

Both teams will be looking to win the toss and post a big 1st innings score and then see if they can make scoreboard pressure count.

Likely line-ups

England are likely to be unchanged barring any late injuries, although there has been some mutterings that Ajmal Shahzad, whose ability to get reverse swing should suit the Adelaide wicket, may come in for Steve Finn.

For Australia, we know that there will be at least one change with Bollinger or Harris coming in for Johnson. Both may play if the selectors decide to leave Ben Hilfenhaus out too.

Look out for...

Kevin Pietersen looked better than he has for ages during his 43 at Brisbane and a big score cannot be that far away. He scored 158 in the last Adelaide Test and being fond of the limelight, he will be especially determined to steal away some of Cook's thunder. 

Marcus North has a habit of saving his skin just when you think he is a goner, so don't be surprised if he hits his sixth Test hundred - and his first in Australia.

The resumption of the war of words between Shane Watson and James Anderson, which threatened to boil over at times in Brisbane and which should continue to provide excellent theatre.

Previously at Adelaide

Australia have won 16 of 29 Tests against England at Adelaide, whilst the visitors have triumphed on eight occasions. Here is what happened in the last four, along with Adelaide's most famous Test of all:

2006 - Australia won by six wickets: The nadir of a dreadful series for England saw them start the final day 97 runs ahead with nine wickets left on a flat track before Shane Warne induced an almighty panic, leading to the most ignominious of defeats.

2002 - Australia won by an innings and 51: Despite a brilliant 177 from Michael Vaughan, England could only muster 342 batting first. A ruthless Australia responded with 552 for nine with Ponting hitting 154 and England then folded for 159 in their second innings.

1998 - Australia won by 205 runs: At 187/3, with Hussain and Ramprakash going well, England were looking good in response to Australia's 391, but then came the all-too familiar batting collapse as the last seven wickets fell for 40. Chasing an unlikely 443, England succumbed in their 2nd innings too - this time for 237 - and Australia had retained the Ashes again.

1995 - England won by 106 runs: England's last win in Adelaide was their only moment of joy in the 1994/95 series. Australia led by 66 on 1st innings, but a belligerent 88 off just 95 balls by Phil De Freitas enabled England to set the Aussies 263 to win. Devon Malcolm and Chris Lewis then took four wickets apiece as Australia could only make 156.

1933 - England won by 338 runs: The most infamous Test match ever? It nearly broke an Empire. With the series locked at 1-1, England slipped to 30 for four before recovering to 341. Then the real drama unfolded as first Woodfull and then Oldfield were felled by Larwood. Cables were exchanged between the ACB and MCC, mounted police kept a baying crowd from rioting and Jardine maintained his iron rule as England cantered to victory. 

Prediction:

It is difficult to see either side taking 20 wickets, so we go for a draw. However, if England win the toss and post a big first innings score, don't be surprised to see the Aussies collapse like at Lord's and The Oval in 2009.

Where next?

England's best Test performances of the noughties

Ten tips for The Ashes

Zeroes: Mitchell Johnson

The 25 Greatest Ashes Tests of them all: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3

Our County XI of the season

What a finish and how disappointing for Somerset to be the bridesmaids in each of the three domestic competitions. In a season where so much was wrong: the alleged corruption, the elongated FP Twenty 20 tournament and the sidelining of the county championship, the ECB were fortunate that each of its three competitions had a dramatic conclusion.

So with the prizes handed out, it is now time to pick our team of the season, which is based on the championship only given that we didn't really follow the CB 40 until the latter stages and the FP T20 until the finals day.

1. Marcus Trescothick (Captain) (1397 runs at 58.20) - So near but yet so far in his first season as captain as Tresco again showed that he is still the best England qualified batsman in the country in all formats bar none.

2. Adam Lyth (1509 runs at 52.03) - The 22 year old finished as the leading run scorer in Division 1 and particularly in the first half of the season regularly propelled the White Rose county's batting. Just pips Michael Carberry as Trescothick's opening partner.

3. Mark Ramprakash (1595 runs at 61.34) - Just like a vintage Chateau Lafitte, Ramps keeps getting better with age. Once again finished as the leading run scorer in the championship and this wasn't even one of his better seasons with only the five hundreds this time.

4. Jacques Rudolph (1375 runs at 50.92) - South Africa's loss continues to be Yorkshire's gain as Rudolph keeps plundering the runs. Gets into our XI ahead of his county captain Andrew Gale.

5. James Hildreth (1440 runs at 65.45) - A stellar season for the batsman once described by Justin Langer as an "extraordinary talent" with seven hundreds. Must be close to England selection and is likely to tour with the Academy this winter.

6. Chris Read (916 runs at 45.80, 59 catches & 4 stumpings) - Gets the nod ahead of Stephen Davies who also had a good year. Read is still arguably the best keeper in the championship and can always be relied upon for runs. The fact that he managed to successfully captain Notts to the title is testament to his multi-tasking skills.

7. Adil Rashid (732 runs at 45.75, 57 wickets at 31.29) - Took some time to get into the groove with the ball, but then consistently took wickets. His batting continues to impress and surely he can't be ignored by the England selectors for much longer?

8. Chris Woakes (54 wickets at 21.57, 431 runs at 23.94) - A burgeoning all-rounder who had a strong start and end to the season. Could well find himself on the Academy tour this winter.

9. Chris Tremlett (48 wickets at 20.18) - Seemed rejuvenated by his move to The Oval and most importantly stayed injury free. Deserves to be in the Ashes squad where his height, bounce and accuracy could prove a potent weapon.

10. Andre Adams (68 wickets at 22.17) - The leading wicket-taker in the country was one of the prime reasons why Notts scraped their way to the title. A strike rate of 40.2 is phenomenal. Gets in ahead of Gemaal Hussain and James Harris.

11. Monty Panesar (52 wickets at 25.69) - Like Tremlett, Monty was reinvigorated by a change of county and seems to have rediscovered his mojo at Hove. Should be picked for the Ashes squad ahead of Rashid and Tredwell.

Ashes 100-1: 98 Deano's match

Today we reach number 98 in our Ashes 100-1 countdown and appropriately we go back to Melbourne in 1998 and a former England fast bowler's one day in the sun and an alcoholic infused haze for the Reverse Sweep.

1998 was the year that I spent a memorable time travelling across Australia. I had been in Cairns when a thunderstorm saved England in the 1st test at Brisbane. I then suffered being mercifully ribbed by our Aussie ranger in Kakadu National Park as England were thrashed at the WACA before passing through Coober Pedy as Australia retained the Ashes with another win in Adelaide.

So it was by Christmas that my brother and I reached Melbourne and tickets were purchased for the Boxing Day test at the MCG. We weren't confident, but as English cricket fans we were used to being thrashed by the Aussies and at least we would get to enjoy cricket at one of the best sporting theatres in the world.

And we expected to get a tan into the bargain. Christmas Day had been spent on St Kilda's beach in glorious sunshine and 37 degree heat. So when we made our way to the MCG the morning after we expected more of the same. Big mistake. The temperature had dropped 20 degrees and it rained for most of the day. No cricket and no sun meant the only thing we left with were goose pimples.

Fortunately, the rest of the test match was a classic (see scorecard). England batted first and Alec Stewart hit a captain's knock of 107 as his side compiled a first innings of 270. In reply, Australia struggled to 252 for eight before that snake in the grass Steve Waugh batted with the tail for the umpteenth time against England to hit an unbeaten 122 and carry the Aussies to 340.

When Mike Atherton duly bagged a pair, the game looked up for England, but half centuries from Stewart, Nasser Hussain and Graeme Hick saw England set the Aussies 175 to win. Knowing Australia's poor record at chasing smallish totals and also their propensity for losing a match once they had secured the series, optimism was rife amongst the Barmy Army supporters we were sitting with. No doubt the regular flow of cold but tasteless Australian beer was fuelling our confidence.

However, optimism had dimmed somewhat when Australia reached 103 for two before Mark Ramprakash pulled off a remarkable catch to get rid of Justin Langer. That seemed to put some doubt into Australian minds and soon after Mark Waugh, Darren Lehmann, Ian Healy and Damien Fleming all fell in quick succession - all to Dean Headley who for one day at least played the part of a world-class fast bowler.

But the thorn in England's side Steve Waugh was still there and shepherding number nine (and debutant) Matt Nicholson to the winning target. With only 14 runs to get and three wickets still remaining, most of our hopes had gone. Then Headley (six for 60) struck again to have Nicholson caught behind by Warren Hegg before Darren Gough cleaned up Stuart McGill and Glenn McGrath in the blink of an eye.

England had incredibly won by 12 runs and we had witnessed a great test match with a pulsating conclusion. When we left we ground we were knackered, pretty drunk but elated - the game had finished after 7.30. The night stretched on long into the early hours as we drank numerous toasts to Stewart, Gough and Ramps, but most of all Headley. What a shame that injury and form consigned him to be one of cricket's one hit wonders.  

English cricket's great lost talent - Reprise

Of batsmen who have scored at least 20,000 county championship runs, who do you think has the highest average? Most sages would opt for Wally Hammond, Len Hutton, Jack Hobbs, Herbert Sutcliffe or even Graham Gooch or Geoff Boycott. All of these except Hutton managed 20,000 runs; World War II prevented the great Yorkshire and England batsman from reaching this landmark - his final tally being 19,361 at 52.04.

None of these answers would be correct as the batsman that holds this lofty honour is none other than Mark Ramprakash, who as of yesterday has scored 27,987 championship runs at 60.32. The next best is Boycott (58.27), with C.B.Fry (56.77), Hammond (56.67) and Graeme Hick (54.19) making up the rest of the top five. Indeed, Ramprakash is only behind the great KS Ranjitsinhji (16,194 runs at 62.04), of batsmen with over 10,000 championship runs.

It was perhaps entirely appropriate therefore that in the week following England's World T20 triumph, Ramprakash again showed what might have been as he served his revenge cold to his former county Middlesex with scores of 223 and 103 not out in their Division 2 match at the Oval. The most talented English batsman of his generation was again reminding everyone that Kevin Pietersen may be good, but in terms of pure batsmanship he is better.

Ramprakash is like a bottle of excellent Chateau Lafitte in the way he has got better and better with age. He is now 40, but shows no sign of letting up the flow of runs and one wonders if he could have emulated Gooch in being one of the best test batsmen in the World despite being on the wrong side of 40. That of course is the great paradox with Ramprakash. Yes, he was messed about badly by the selectors and no doubt he would have done better under the central contract system and if more faith had been shown, but a return of two hundreds from 52 tests at an average of 27.32 doesn't even go close to justifying his immense talent.

He last played for England in the Auckland test of 2002, when he was 32 years old. Since then he has been unstoppable in county cricket and from the 2003 season onwards has never averaged less than 60 each season. Indeed, in 2006 and 2007 he averaged over 100, which is an extraordinary feat. Surrey have certainly seen the best of him. Since joining the county in 2001, Ramprakash averages 75.76 in the championship with 58 hundreds from 131 matches; a quite staggering performance.

One wonders if he could have replicated this for England these past eight years. His backers will say that as Ramprakash has got older, he has relaxed and allowed his true talent to flourish and this means he would have overcome the nerves that got the better of him when he stepped onto the big stage. His doubters will counter by saying that tension would have continued to grip him in an England shirt and that he would have never fully justified his talent. We will never know, but we believe that just as with vintage wine, if England had given Ramprakash more time they could have finally uncorked the full flavour of his abilities and had its own Ponting, Lara or Tendulkar. Maybe Ramprakash will just have to settle for that in his next life.

Wikio 

 

Ian Bell's renaissance continues

Like Mark Ramprakash and Graeme Hick before him, Ian Bell is a supremely talented batsman who hasn't quite lived up to his immense promise in test cricket. After finally being dropped after England were hustled out for 51 by the West Indies at Sabina Park in February last year, it looked like Bell would struggle to get back into the side.

Although his average of 40 was significantly higher than Ramprakash or Hick, many similarities with the two existed. He had failed to nail down the number three spot, had developed an annoying habit of getting out when well set and only seemed to score heavily when others were doing the same. Bell seemed a batsman happy to play the supporting act, but never the lead role. Unlike Ramprakash and Hick who were in and out of the side regularly, Bell could not argue that he hadn't been given a fair run before being dropped, and many observers felt that he had had enough opportunities.

But on the evidence of his performances since being recalled against Australia at Edgbaston last summer, it seems that the selectors have been right and that now is time to reassess the Warwickshire batsman. Initially things didn't seem to have changed as Bell got out after scoring an attractive fifty at Edgbaston and then followed that up with two failures at Headingley. The clamour to replace him was intense but the selectors decided that Ravi Bopara would be the fall guy and elevated Bell to the number three position for the crunch Oval test.

Here something seemed to change. Yes, Bell got out again when well set on 72. But this wasn't a bright and breezy 72. He was all at sea initially against Mitchell Johnson and showed courage and concentration to get through and build what proved to be a very important innings. Unfortunately, as had always seemed to be the case in his career, Bell's brave innings was overshadowed by others - this time Stuart Broad's bowling and Jonathan Trott's second innings ton on debut.

Next up in the 1st test of the South African series, Bell inexplicably left a straight one from Paul Harris in the 1st innings to be bowled for 5 and also failed in the second innings. Once again the clamour for Bell's removal reached a crescendo and the selectors came close to dropping him in favour of another bowler for Durban. But Bell remained and it was here that the renaissance truly began with his 140 giving England the 1st innings lead they required to make South Africa capitulate to win the match. This wasn't enough for the doubters who cited the statistic that Bell had still never scored a test match century unless one of his colleagues had done so previously.

In the next test at Newlands, Bell again gave his wicket away in the 1st innings when well set on 48, but this time followed it up with a battling 78, when in tandem with Paul Collingwood he marshalled an England rearguard that saved the test. We were now seeing substance as well as style, and character as well as class.

 
So onto Bangladesh. His 84 in the 1st test came when there was no pressure on and like Hick before him, one could even argue that he was worthy of a 'flat track bully' tag given his 350 runs for once out against the Bangladeshis. But no one can doubt the importance of his century in the current 2nd test, where he has saved England from the ignominy of a 1st innings deficit and likely defeat with a wonderfully composed 138 - his tenth test century. Of course Tim Bresnan could also reach three figures to keep the previously referred statistic alive, but these were not easy runs in the context of the match.

The onus now for Bell is to kick on from here. 714 runs at 51 since his return at Edgbaston is impressive and considering England have summer series against Bangladesh and Pakistan one should expect this renaissance to continue. But then come the Ashes in Australia and Bell's chance to improve his dreadful record against England's greatest foes. This will be Bell's biggest test.  

Finally, an international sportsman more mentally fragile than Mark Ramprakash

...step forward Wayne Bridge.

We all know that the vast majority of today's football players are precious, but this is ridiculous. Can you imagine any other profession when the injured party in a menage a trois effectively resigned as a result of it?

Bridge is either an overpaid wimp or scared that a certain team 'mate' is going to roger him too.