The Reverse Sweep

Who gets in an England-South Africa composite XI?

Yes, we know the West Indies series is only one Test old and that there is still the small matter of the limited overs matches before the Australians arrive for a completely unnecessary five match one day series - stay awake at the back there. But the return of Test cricket and the hot weather has got us thinking about the South African series later this summer.

Of course, everyone was awaiting the tussle with India last summer with baited breath and that turned out to be a bit of a damp squib with only Rahul Dravid actually bothering to turn up. The series with the Proteas is also being criminally played over just three matches, rather than the four or heaven forbid five encounters it should be.

Notwithstanding all this however, we believe a classic is in the offing and the hair's breadth between the sides is revealed in our piece this week for All Out Cricket where we put our selector's hat on and pick a composite XI from the sides led by Andrew Strauss and Graeme Smith.

Have a read of Who Gets In An England-South Africa XI? to see if you agree with us.

Where next?

Kevin Pietersen is innocent (and right about Nick Knight)

1st Test: England vs West Indies - England marks out of 10

Hedley Verity - a proper hero with 'no breaking point'

England are playing THIRTEEN ODI this summer. Oh joy...

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

An XI of cricketers who also played in the FA Cup Final

Tomorrow our Liverpool side will take on Chelsea in the FA Cup Final, a game which we are not exactly confident that the men in red will emerge victorious.

To quell our nervousness, for our piece All Out Cricket this week we compiled an XI of cricketers that also played in the FA Cup Final.

Have a read of FA Cup Final Cricketers and be surprised at the identity of our 12th man - who incongruously came close to participating in the inaugural final of the FA Cup.

Where next?

Fry and Ranjitsinhji - Brothers in Arms

They also played cricket - an XI of illustriously named Cricketers

An XI of Cricket Tragics who were also Rugger Buggers

Cricket XIs: Cricketing Criminals

An XI of cricketers that died young

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

Annus Orior Oriri Ortus: The breakthrough Test XI of 2011

Well, we’ve already picked our best and worst Test XIs of 2011 at The Reverse Sweep and with (for once) perfect timing our final XI of 2011, which was published yesterday on All Out Cricket features those who made their bows in Test cricket and made an instant impression.

Why perfect timing, you may ask? Well, it may have escaped your attention that David Warner yesterday made the joint fourth fastest Test hundred in history and the quickest by an opener. Clearly though his inclusion in our XI is the biggest milestone he has yet achieved in his short Test career.

To see who else joins him in our XI having appeared for the first time on the Test stage and enjoyed an annus orior oriri ortus (the closest we could find in Latin to 'breakthrough' if you were interested) please head over to All Out Cricket to read our Breakthrough Acts XI of 2011.

Where next?

Annus mirabilis: The best Test XI of 2011

Annus horribilis: The Worst Test XI of 2011

Who are cricket's likely future greats?

Read our Cricket Review of 2011

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

Annus horribilis: the worst Test XI of 2011

We've already selected our best Test XI of 2011, but perhaps this collection of cricketers who suffered an annus horribilis in the ultimate form of the game in 2011 should provoke much more hilarity:

Phil Hughes (404 runs at 26.93): Despite a hundred against Sri Lanka and an attractive 80 odd in Johannesburg, 2011 was a horrendous year for Australia’s erstwhile Test opener. His year went from bad to worse with the four out of four caught Guptill bowled Martin dismissals in the series with New Zealand likely to prove his international cricket epitaph. Some get sent to Switzerland when their condition is terminal, Hughes has been sent to Worcestershire instead to convalesce.

Gautam Gambhir (470 runs at 31.33): We could just as easily have picked Virender Sehwag who actually had a lower average than his opening partner in 2011 and only had a top Test score of 67, but that seemed to border on the sacrilegious so Gambhir it is. No Test hundreds and a year sprinkled with injury, injudicious shots, a growing tentativeness outside off-stump and a lack of weddings to attend. The ghastliness of his year was summed up when he suffered concussion when failing to catch Kevin Pietersen. In truth, Gambhir looked concussed most times he came to the crease in Tests in 2011.

Ramnaresh Sarwan (83 runs at 10.37): A traumatic year for the experienced Sarwan with a top score of 23 and just 83 runs from his eight visits to the crease preceding his inevitable axing. With tyros such as Darren Bravo and Kirk Edwards shining it seems unlikely that the cultured Sarwan will be sighted in the maroon West Indian cap again.  

Mahela Jayawardene (517 runs at 24.61): It may have been the year of his 10,000th Test run and a sparkling century in the World Cup Final, but in terms of Test cricket it was an annus horribilis for the silky smooth Jayawardene with just one hundred in ten Tests mirroring his country’s slide down the rankings. Have the eyes gone?

Jesse Ryder (97 runs at 12.12): Three ducks and just 97 runs in eight innings meant that 2011 was a year when the larger than life Kiwi ate more pies, sunk more tinnies and wore more inches around his generous waist than he scored Test runs.

Suresh Raina (337 runs at 25.92): Rarely has an international cricketer looked more uncomfortable against the short ball than Raina did in England last summer. So much so that by the end of the series, England barely bothered celebrating his inevitably quick demise each time he strode to the wicket.

Brad Haddin (335 runs at 20.93): A year in which the iron-gloved keeper was for once better behind the stumps than he was in front of them – not that there was any discernible improvement in his shoddy keeping. With the bat there were several reckless and irresponsible dismissals none more so than in the ignominious 2nd innings collapses in Cape Town and Hobart. A nation prays that Tim Paine’s hands make the swiftest of recoveries.

Harbhajan Singh (20 wickets at 38.05): He may have been part of the World Cup winning side, but 2011 saw his decline as a Test match bowler accelerate until injury and the emergence of Ashwin consigned him to the sidelines. Having his car robbed in December just about summed up a dismal year for the supposed Turbanator.

Mitchell Johnson (13 wickets at 56.61): Johnson is not a figure of ridicule for nothing – just look at that bowling average, which is even worse when his strike rate in 2011 of a wicket every 92 deliveries is taken into account. Outbowled by an 18 year old debutant with just a handful of first-class appearances in Johannesburg, injury and the emergence of James Pattinson, the aforementioned Patrick Cummins and a rejuvenated Ben Hilfenhaus means that Johnson should have plenty of time to rest that injured foot.

Sreesanth (13 wickets at 52.76): Speaking of figures of ridicule, Sreesanth was the least impressive of an impotent Indian bowling line-up in England over the summer. Doesn’t take many wickets, leaks runs at over four runs an over and seems to have lost any semblance of pace. Likely to join his best pal Harbhajan on the sidelines for some time and perhaps forever.

Kemar Roach (7 wickets at 55.14): If you thought Johnson’s strike rate of 92 was bad try Roach’s performance of a wicket every 99 deliveries in 2011. Whilst there’s no doubting his talent, the suggestions of some that he should replace captain Darren Sammy in the West Indian Test XI seem at best misplaced and at worst downright foolish.

Finally, a special mention to our 12th man - RP Singh who was called up from the beach to replace the injured Zaheer Khan in England and subsequently looked a shadow (albeit twice the side and half the speed) of the bowler who performed so well four years earlier when he played in the final match of the series at The Oval and took 0/134.

Where next?

The worst Test XI of 2010

The best Test XI of 2011

The best Test XI of 2010

Read our Cricket Review of 2011

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

Check out some of our other Cricket XIs: They also played cricket, Rugger Buggers, Cricketing Criminals , A team of cricketers that died young, The Worst Australia Ashes XI of the last 30 years, The Worst England Ashes XI of the last 30 years  

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

The best Test XI of 2011

Alastair Cook (927 runs at 84.27, 4 100s): Started off the year in Sydney with his third hundred of a prolific Ashes series before scoring runs for fun against Sri Lanka and then grinding India into submission with a monumental 294 at Edgbaston.

Rahul Dravid (1145 runs at 57.25, 5 100s): We could have gone for either Taufeeq Umar and Mohammad Hafeez as a specialist opener but instead we opt for the reluctant opener and highest Test run scorer of the year. 2011 was the year of Dravid's resurrection. Whether it was showing the Indian youngsters how to do it with a brilliant hundred on a treacherous Sabina Park wicket or singularly manning a burning bridge in England with three hundreds and a quarter of the team's total runs in the series, Dravid was immense. 

Kumar Sangakkara (1034 runs at 49.23, 4 100s): Others may hadmore impressive averages in 2011, but King Kumar was the second highest scorer in Tests and saved matches at the Rose Bowl and even more memorably at Abu Dhabi where his epic 644 minute 211 foiled Pakistan. Finally his 2nd innings hundred at Kingsmead helped set up a famous win for his side. If that wasn't enough like Dravid he also shone away from the crease too with his already legendary Cowdrey Lecture.

Kevin Pietersen (731 runs at 73.10, 2 100s): A close call with Younis Khan(765 runs at 85.00) but we judged that KP's runs came against sterner opposition. His double hundred at Lord's against India showed a new responsibility to Pietersen's batting whilst his 175 at The Oval showed that he was back to his flamboyant peacock strutting best.

Ian Bell (950 runs at 118.75, 5 100s): From just 11 visits to the crease in 2011, Bell hit one double hundred, four further hundreds and two fifties. He also finally removed the monkey off his back when batting at three with a brilliant match-turning hundred at Trent Bridge and a masterly double hundred at The Oval. Could well be the best batsman in the world at the moment.

Misbah-ul-Haq (765 runs at 69.54, 1 100): Pakistan's inspirational captain proved a calming influence on his exhuberent team and an even calmer presence at the crease where he scored seven fifties to go with his one hundred. As captain his side beat New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh and drew in the Caribbean, which given the turmoil when he took over from the disgraced Salman Butt was nothing short of remarkable.

Matt Prior (519 runs at 64.87, 3 100s): Like Cook and Bell started off the year with a hundred in the Sydney Test. He then scored hundreds at Lord's against Sri Lanka and a crucial 2nd innings effort against India after England had suffered a mini-collapse. Perhaps even more important is the speed at which he gets his runs with his strike rate of 89 being the highest of anyone with more than 250 runs in 2011. His work with the gloves continues to impress just don't mention that Lord's dressing room window.

Stuart Broad (33 wickets at 22.30, 1 five-for; 239 runs at 39.83, 3 50s): Welegedera, Gul, Philander and team-mates Bresnan and Tremlett ran him close but Broad's performances against India gets him our vote. In the first two Tests he bordered on the Bothamesque – the partnership with Prior steadied the ship at Lord’s, his fifty at Trent Bridge lifted England from the abyss and his hat-trick the next day dramatically changed the course of the match. He ended the series with 25 wickets at 14 and 182 runs at 61.

Dale Steyn (28 wickets at 19.57, 2 five-fors) - South Africa may have only played five Tests in 2011 but it is impossible to leave the best bowler in the world by a country mile out especially with a strike rate in 2011 of 38.2. Became the second quickest in history (after Lillee) to 250 Test wickets and at his best reminds one of Malcolm Marshall in his pomp. Yes, Steyn is that good.

Saeed Ajmal (50 wickets at 23.86, 3 five-fors): The leading wicket taker in Tests in 2011 and now arguably the best spinner in world cricket - his upcoming battle with Swann in the UAE will be fascinating. Pips team-mate Abdur Rehman, Devendra Bishoo and Rangana Herath for the spinners role in our XI.

James Anderson (35 wickets at 24.85, ER 2.93, SR 50.8, 1 five-for): Completed his demolition job of Australia at Sydney and then moved on to the small matter of India's stellar batting line-up in the summer where he made a certain Sachin Tendulkar look mortal. After Steyn the best quick bowler in the world.

Where next?

The best Test XI of 2010

Read our Cricket Review of 2011

Are Cook, Trott and Bell more impressive than Pippa Middleton's derriere?

Dale Steyn's formidable statistics

Responsibility and Misbah-ul-Haq

Rahul Dravid - The impenetrable wall

Kumar Sangakkara's captivating story

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

An XI of Test one cap wonders

Over 400 cricketers are stuck on one Test cap, here is an XI of these unlucky fellows – some of whom did better than others...

Rodney Redmond New Zealand v Pakistan 1973

Redmond arguably had the best debut of any in the one cap club cracking 107 and 56 against Pakistan in Christchurch and consequently winning a place on the tour to England the following summer. Unfortunately for Redmond he didn’t take too well to his new contact lenses, struggled for runs and failed to play in any of the Tests. And that was that. At least son Aaron has fared a little better having played seven Tests to date.  

Andy Lloyd England v West Indies 1984

Lloyd had the misfortune to make his debut against the fearsome West Indies attack of 1984. Half-an-hour into his first innings, he ducked into a bouncer from Malcolm Marshall and was rushed off to hospital, suffering from double vision. There he remained for the rest of the match, and he did not play again that season. England were famously blackwashed whereas Lloyd was left with the dubious honour of being the only player to open in a Test and never be out.

Andrew Ganteaume West Indies v England 1948

Wicketkeeper-batsman Ganteaume topped Don Bradman’s immortal average of 99.94 having scored 112 in his only Test innings. Thanks to the West Indies endless supply of great batsmen at the time and the fact that it was felt that he have slowed down to much when nearing his hundred (thus preventing a West Indian win), Ganteaume was never to get to the crease in a Test again.

Roy Park Australia v England 1920-21

It wasn’t the fact that Dr Park was bowled first ball in his only innings that earns him a place in this XI, nor that he hadn’t slept the night before on account of supervising a complicated birth but the legend of how his wife watching proudly in the crowd missed her husband’s entire Test career by bending down to pick up her knitting at just the wrong moment.

Stuart Law Australia v Sri Lanka 1995

Law stroked an effortless unbeaten 54 in place of the injured Steve Waugh, but his face didn’t fit and he had to be content with one-day international cricket and compiling over 27,000 first-class runs at an average of over 50. If he had been English, Law would probably have played at least 50 Tests.

Gavin Hamilton England v South Africa 1999

Having starred for Scotland during the 1999 World Cup, Hamilton was a surprise pick for the following winter’s tour to South Africa. He made his debut in the 1st Test at Johannesburg (Duncan Fletcher’s first game as coach), bagged a pair, didn’t take a wicket and was unceremoniously dumped.  Hamilton then had to wait a further four years to requalify for Scotland who he captained from 2009. Alex Ferguson doubtless wasn’t amused.

Zulqarnain Haider Pakistan v England 2010

After Pakistan finally lost patience with the error prone Kamran Akmal, Haider was given the gloves at Edgbaston where he responded to a first ball duck with a courageous second innings 88. Unfortunately, a broken finger (allegedly caused by Stuart Broad petulantly throwing the ball at him) ruled him out of the rest of the series. Then he famously absconded from the team hotel in Dubai during a series with South Africa claiming he had received death threats and been kidnapped by aliens (ok we made that bit up). He fled to England but has now returned to Pakistan so may still have a chance of exiting the one cap wonder club.

Darren Pattinson England v South Africa 2008

A hark back to the selection faux pas of the 1980s and 90s saw an Australian with only six first-class games in England under his belt plucked from nowhere to face South Africa at Headingley. "Surely the Poms have got better bowlers than Patto?" said a bemused club mate at Dandenong, his Melbourne club. Younger brother James has made a much better fist of Test cricket.

Fred Tate England v Australia 1902

Tate made such a mark in his only Test that the game will forever be known as ‘Tate’s Match’. Unfortunately, it was for all the wrong reasons. England lost a close game and Tate took the blame after crucially dropping a skier off Australian captain Joe Darling and then being last man out clean bowled with England just four runs short of victory. Son Maurice restored honour for the family taking 155 wickets in his 39 Tests – 38 of them in the 1924/25 Ashes down under. 

Charles Marriott England v West Indies 1933

Marriott has the best bowling return of any in the one cap club taking 11 for 96 and bamboozling the West Indies with his googly at The Oval in 1933. He was 38 when he played his solitary Test and he only played cricket part-time on account of his profession as a teacher at Dulwich College. He did tour India the following winter, but couldn’t force his way into the side ahead of the legendary Hedley Verity.

Pud Thurlow Australia v South Africa 1932

The fast bowler had a pretty disastrous debut taking no wickets with the ball and then failing to make his ground as number 11 when called for a quick single by Don Bradman leaving the latter stranded on 299 not out. It was hardly surprising therefore that Thurlow didn’t get to don the baggy green again.

12th man: Brandon Bess West Indies v South Africa 2010

A team like this needs a 12th man and who better than the hitherto unknown Brandon Bess who came in as a last minute replacement for Nelon Pascal at Bridgetown in 2010? A first-class bowling average of 50 didn’t bode well and so it turned out with Bess taking 1 from 92 from his 13 overs.

Where next?

Check out some of our other Cricket XIs: They also played cricket, Rugger Buggers, Cricketing Criminals , A team of cricketers that died young, The Worst Australia Ashes XI of the last 30 years, The Worst England Ashes XI of the last 30 years 

The strangest test debutant of all

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

They also played cricket - an XI of illustriously named Cricketers

Christ

Not the Son of God, but slow-left armer Charles who played 24 First-Class matches for Queensland from 1937-47, and of whom Keith Miller once said “I didn’t mind getting out in the first innings, after all Christ caught and bowled me!”

Julius Caesar

Nearly two millennia after leading the Roman invasion of Britain, batsman Julius Caesar made three centuries for Surrey during the Victorian era. Like the first Roman Emperor, he also came to a sudden and rather unfortunate end in the month of March – nine days before the Ides -throwing himself underneath a train in 1878.

Chris Martin

When Mr Gwyneth Paltrow isn’t creating tuneful little ditties on the piano, picking at macrobiotic food or giving his children incongruous names, he also opens the bowling for New Zealand. Former Creation label boss Alan McGee, who famously described Coldplay as music for “bedwetters” would doubtless say that Martin’s bowling was even more insipid than his band.

William Shakespeare

To bat, or not to bat? This possibly was the question that crossed the mind of one William Shakespeare during his 26 matches for Worcestershire in the period immediately after the end of World War I.

Napoleon Einstein

Probably hailing from a family of Francophile scientific geniuses, this young all-rounder was part of India’s 2008 under-19 World Cup winning squad. Yet to play against England’s pace attack where doubtless he would meet his Waterloo - unless it was in India of course.

Charles Dickens

The selectors of Griqualand didn’t heed this namesake of the famous Victorian author when he asked “please sir, can I have some more?” with his first-class career being restricted to just four matches despite one hundred in his eight innings.

Dick Whitington

Just one ‘t’ short of being Lord Mayor of London, this Mr Whitington went much further afield to seek streets paved with gold but had to make do with Adelaide and a cricket career with South Australia. Also had the quite remarkable middle name of ‘Smallpeice’ – no further comment necessary.

Thomas More

Lord Chancellor of England, author of Utopia and canonised saint was beheaded in 1535 for refusing to swear an oath of allegiance to Henry VIII as part of the King’s struggle to divorce Catherine of Aragon. Despite this minor inconvenience he was still able to forge an albeit less eventful cricket career, kicking wicket for Minor County Shropshire.  

George Bernard Shaw

A giant of literature he may have been, but he also lived a secret double life as a little known left arm spinner who played just 16 matches for Glamorgan in the early 1950s. No, really.

Nat Old King Cole

Not Nat, not Old, but just plain King Cole was a member of the pioneering Aboriginal touring team of England in 1861. Unfortunately, Cole’s talents as a cricketer will never be known as he sadly died of tuberculosis on the trip.

Robert Kennedy

And you thought that the brother and Attorney General of JFK had been assassinated when running for President in 1968? If he had taken the care to change his name then no-one would have realised the cover-up when he turned up as a fast-medium bowler for Wellington who played four Tests for New Zealand in 1995-96. How’s that for a conspiracy theory?

12^thman: Yasir Arafat

Just a couple of letters short of being the former head of the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the nemesis of Israel, this Pakistani fast bowler has sampled life in the far less oppressive Garden of England with Kent as well as spells with Sussex and Surrey.

Where next?

An XI of Cricket Tragics who were also Rugger Buggers

Cricket XIs: Cricketing Criminals

An XI of cricketers that died young

10 reasons why neutrals should be glad Lancashire won the County Championship

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

An XI of Cricket Tragics who were also Rugger Buggers

 
CB Fry

The ultimate multi-sports genius. Fry captained England at cricket, played 26 Tests and scored nearly 31,000 first-class runs. He also set the world long jump record, played football for England and rugby for Oxford University, Blackheath and the Barbarians. He even nearly reputedly became King of Albania. Hardly surprising then that even in his seventies he was still able to perform his party piece: jumping backwards onto a mantelpiece from a standing position

Martin Donnelly

Widely recognised as one of New Zealand’s greatest ever batsmen even if War and his country’s fledgling status restricted him to just seven Tests. His one appearance at fly half for England though resulted in a resounding and then record win for Ireland at Lansdowne Road.

Monkey Hornby

The incongruously named Hornby, who was known as Monkey because of his small stature and energetic persona, was one of only two men to captain England at both cricket and rugby as well as being Lancashire’s skipper for 20 years. He led England to defeat at the Oval in 1882, about which the famous Sporting Life obituary was penned and the Ashes born.

Andrew Stoddart

The other man to captain England at both sports was the leading centre of his era and led England on two Ashes expeditions Down Under despite not taking up cricket seriously until he was 22. Beset with health and financial problems, he took his own life at the age of 52.

Tuppy Owen-Smith

Over 75 years before South African born Kevin Pietersen made his Test debut for England, Owen-Smith arguably went one better when having already scored a hundred for his country against England at Headingley in 1929, he turned out for and eventually captained England’s rugby side as an attacking full-back just one year later. A leg-spinner, his maiden first-class wicket was none other than the great Wally Hammond.

Sammy Woods

Representing South Africa at cricket and England at rugby is one thing, but playing Test cricket for BOTH Australia and England as Sydney born Woods did is quite another. A tremendously fast and strong wing-forward, he was also capped 13 times for England at rugby.  

Rob Andrew

The hero of England’s last-gasp win over Australia in the 1995 World Cup Quarter Final was also a very good cricketer, captaining Cambridge University and scoring a first-class ton against Notts. He also snared a young Mike Atherton with his off-spin whilst turning out for Yorkshire seconds.

Rudi van Vuuren

The only man to represent his country at the cricket AND rugby world cups and he did it in the same year too – 2003, starring in the former with five for 43 for Namibia against England and making a late cameo in the rugby world cup against Romania. It wasn’t all good for van Vuuren though with Darren Lehmann taking 28 runs off one of his overs.

Jeff Wilson

The legendary full back scored 44 tries in his 60 Tests, but this Double All Black’s international rugby career was also sandwiched by four one day internationals for the Kiwis as a precocious 19 year old and two more 12 years later.

Maurice Turnbull

Long-serving Glamorgan captain Turnbull, not only played Test cricket for England and rugby for Wales, he also represented Wales at hockey too. Sadly, his youthful vigour was snuffed out by a German sniper in Normandy in 1944.

Dusty Hare

The Leicester full back was an unlikely hero of the young Reverse Sweep, with Hare’s trusty boot helping England to the Grand Slam in 1980. His cricket career was less successful however, with only a modest 171 runs at 12.21 from his ten games for Notts.

Where next?

An XI of Cricket Heroes

Cricket XIs: Cricketing Criminals

An XI of cricketers that died young

An XI of unlikely World Cup heroes and a not so heroic 12th man

10 reasons why Ian Botham may have worn sunglasses at the premiere of 'From the Ashes'

Check out all our other Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

10 reasons why neutrals should be glad Lancashire won the County Championship

 
Do they know it's Christmas?

No one likes to see their fellow human beings stricken with starvation – you only need to see what happened after Michael Buerk’s famous BBC News report from Ethiopia in 1984 was aired to see evidence of that. Lancashire’s County Championship famine had lasted 77 long and painful years. That is positively biblical, so unless you come from Yorkshire (or perhaps Warwickshire), one cannot fail to be glad for Glen Chapple and his band of merry men.

The rehabilitation of Peter Moores

As Sussex supporters, we will be eternally grateful for Moores's role in leading Sussex to their first County Championship in 2003 after 113 years of trying. His methods may not have worked with England, but Moores is undoubtedly a fine coach. Now that he has led Lancashire to the promised land too, his CV looks even more remarkable.

Liverpool 1 Manchester 0

We’ve always wondered why Lancashire plays most of its cricket matches in Manchester – perhaps the most dreary and rainy place in the country and home to pitches that are even less likely to produce results than your average sub-continental wicket. What else other than the weather could Morrissey have been lamenting about in Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now? A move along the M62 to Aigburth to the Mersey Paradise of Aigburth has worked absolute wonders and demonstrated the value of outgrounds to other counties.

Glen Chapple – the new Black Knight

Just like the infamous Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Glen Chapple simply refused to die. He may have only had one leg, but Chapple shrugged it off doubtless declaring “Tis but a scratch” and continued to bowl taking three Somerset wickets in the second innings. This do or die approach epitomised Lancashire’s season, so it was entirely fitting that the limbless Chapple became the first Lancashire captain in 77 years to lead his side to the County Championship. OBEs have been handed out for less.

The War of the Roses

It won’t have gone unnoticed in Lancashire that as their team were crowned Champions, acrimony and infighting were firmly on the agenda at Yorkshire County Cricket Club, with the Chairman being particularly non-complimentary about his players after ignominious relegation to Division 2. The last time Lancashire won the title in 1934, it coincided with Hitler’s brutal purge of the SA in the Night of the Long Knives. Expect something similar at Headingley this winter – neutrals and Lancastrians everywhere will watch with interest and in the case of the latter, no doubt a little glee.

Homegrown glory

With the exception of Stephen Moore and a few cameos from Farveez Maharoof, the bulk of Lancashire’s side were homegrown stars born within the borders of the county – Chapple may hail from Skipton, but surely he is an honorary Lancastrian by now? In the days of Kolpaks, non-box office overseas stars and transfers between counties, this was both a timely and refreshing reminder that counties should perhaps look closer to home in developing their own talent and thus create the indomitable spirit that carried Lancashire to glory.

Saved from the stocks

We’ll write a post in the next few days reflecting on what were a disastrous set of predictions by the Reverse Sweep at the outset of the season. But suffice to say, we were relieved that Warwickshire – one of our tips for relegation – didn’t prevail in the final reckoning. That surely would have meant a spell in the stocks and lots of rotten vegetables coming our way. There again we did predict that Lancashire would finish seventh...

Hope for Somerset

Perennial bridesmaids Somerset need look no further than Lancashire for inspiration in their quest to win a trophy next season. Somerset may have finished second in the last three T20 finals and two 40 over finals, as well as in last year’s Championship. But that is nothing on Lancashire, who since last winning the Championship had finished runners-up eight times. So fear not Marcus Trescothick, your time to hold up one of the game’s big prizes may yet come.

The perfect casserole

The suspense and last minute nature of Lancashire’s triumph meant that our County Championship casserole turned out perfectly. Delia Smith eat your heart out.

It’ll have annoyed Geoffrey Boycott

No further explanation necessary.

Where next?

County Championship XI of the week #19

Yorkshire chairman Colin Graves gets straight to the point

Read all our County Cricket coverage

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

 

Our Top 20 Cricket Blogs

We recently published a feature on our top 20 cricket blogs. Here in one handy list is the full 20 with links to the individual article:

King Cricket

Cricket With Balls

The Old Batsman

Last of the Summer Whine

99.94

The Spin

The Full Toss

World Cricket Watch

The Confectionery Stall

Pak Spin

The Top Spin

Test Match Sofa

Harris Sportsthoughts

WICB Exposé

Alternative Cricket

The Corridor

Bored Cricket Crazy Indians

Paddle Sweep / Wicket Maiden

Thoughts from the Dustbin

Cricket=Action=Art

and a few more Bubbling under

 

Where next?

Read all our County Cricket coverage

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

Cricket XIs: Cricketing Criminals

 
Whilst not quite plunging to the depths of its Football cousin, Cricket has had its fair share of miscreants, scoundrels, cheats and downright rotters over the years. Here’s an XI of Cricket Criminals:

1. Mark Vermeulen – Assaulting a spectator, Arson: The former Zimbabwe batsman seems to be a couple of pennies short of a sixpence and in 2006, he really lost the plot. First, after being heckled during a Lancashire league match he reacted in a Cantonaesque fashion by first throwing the ball and then a metal boundary marker at a spectator. After being banned for a year he headed back home and promptly burned down Zimbabwe's cricket academy before twice demanding an audience with President Mugabe by banging on the gates of his presidential palace.

2. Navjot Sidhu – Culpable homicide: In December 2006, Sidhu – the veteran of 51 Tests for India - was found guilty and sentenced to a three-year prison term for culpable homicide. This followed a road rage incident in 1988, which left a 65-year old man dead from injuries inflicted by Sidhu. After an appeal, the Supreme Court stayed his conviction and sentence allowing Sidhu to contest and win the Amritsar parliamentary seat in February 2007. Politics seems an apt place for characters like Sidhu.

3. Peter Roebuck – Assault: The former Somerset captain was convicted at Taunton Crown Court in 2001 of assaulting three young South African cricketers he had offered to coach at his home in Devon. He had warned them beforehand that he would use corporal punishment if they failed to obey his "house rules", and subsequently caned all three boys on their buttocks at different times for “misbehaviour”. Roebuck escaped with a suspended jail sentence and destroyed reputation, admitting to the court that “obviously I misjudged the mood…” Quite. Roebuck scurried off to Australia where he is now a respected and brilliant cricket journalist.

4. Hansie Cronje, Mohammad Azharuddin, Saleem Malik, Salman Butt – Corruption, Match-fixing, Spot-fixing: Take your pick from this vile quartet of former international captains who all chose money and greed above their countries; corrupting younger team members and plunging cricket into crisis in the bargain. It’s a shame that the number 11 in our XI didn’t save a bullet each for this disgraced foursome although given Cronje’s demise in a plane crash we could save two bullets for Butt. Just to make sure. 

5. Jacob Martin – Alleged People Trafficking: Martin, who played 10 ODIs for India between 1999 and 2001, was arrested at the end of April 2011 after evidence that he had been involved in a human trafficking incident in 2003. It is alleged that Martin formed a bogus team as cover for trafficking a young boy into the United Kingdom. It seems there may be a silver lining though for Martin, as reports have recently confirmed that he has made Tihar Jail’s 1st XI.

6. King Henry VIII– Cricket: Whether Henry VIII (who surely could have an all-rounder in the mould of W.G Grace) should be considered a criminal depends on your viewpoint of history. But he did criminalise the entire game of cricket at the height of the Reformation in 1536 when he ordered the youth of the realm to practice archery instead of "frivolous" activities "such as cricket-a-wicket". It is not known whether Anne Boleyn’s execution in the same year had anything to do with her playing surreptitious games of cricket with her ladies-in-waiting and the King’s Privy Council. 

7. Edward Pooley – Gambling, Match-fixing: Pooley would have been England’s wicket-keeper in the inaugural Test in Melbourne in 1877. Instead he got himself into a spot of bother after taking a wager on one of MCC’s tour matches in New Zealand, which resulted in a violent disagreement and a court appearance. This meant he literally missed the boat to Australia. Unsurprisingly, Pooley was never selected again and died in poverty in 1907.

8. Chris Lewis – Cocaine Trafficking: The former England all-rounder was jailed for 13 years in 2009 after being found guilty of smuggling cocaine into Britain. Lewis hid the drug in liquid form in tins of fruit and vegetable juice stashed in his kit bag. He always was a bit of a lemon,  not exactly renowned for his intelligence during a career that promised much but delivered little. Perhaps the best example of Lewis’s lack of faculty came when he decided to shave his head on a tour of the West Indies, and was dubbed ‘The Pratt without a Hat’ after being forced off the field with sunstroke.

9. Montague Druitt – Alleged serial killer, Jack the Ripper suspect: Druitt could well be the most notorious cricket criminal of them all. He was found drowned in the River Thames at the age of 31 in 1888. A keen all-rounder, he represented Winchester College, and the Morden Cricket Club of Blackheath amongst others. But Druitt may have led a sinister double-life with many Jack the Ripper experts concluding that Druitt was the man responsible for the infamous Whitechapel murders.

10. Terry Jenner – White collar robbery: The rehabilitated cricket criminal. A leg-spinner who played nine Tests for Australia in the 1970s, Jenner’s life nosedived after retiring and by 1988 he had lost his liberty after being caught stealing from his employer to repay gambling debts. Released after 18 months of his six-and-a-half-year term, Jenner hooked up with a young blond Victorian leg-spinner and the rest is history.

11. Leslie Hylton – Murder: He may not be a household name, but Hylton – a fast bowler who played six Tests for the West Indies in the 1930s - is the only Test cricketer to have been executed - for murdering his adulterous wife. It doesn’t appear to have been a case of a miscarriage of justice either as Hylton’s defence that he had meant to shoot himself but missed fell apart when it was revealed that his wife’s body had just the seven bullets in it.

Where next?

An XI of cricketers that died young

An XI of unlikely World Cup heroes and a not so heroic 12th man

10 reasons why Ian Botham may have worn sunglasses at the premiere of 'From the Ashes'

Cricket Zeroes: Chris Lewis and Salman Butt

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Is this the greatest England XI of the last 30 years?

With England's demolition job of India and the triumphant ascendancy to the number one ranking many pundits are pondering whether this is the greatest England cricket side of them all.

We're not sure about that - Peter May's side of the 1950s and Raymond Illingworth's team of the late 1960s and early 1970s would be two viable alternatives. In any case this side will need to dominate for some time before 'best ever' accolades can be handed out.

However, as we wrote in our latest piece for All Out Cricket, four of the current side make our composite England XI of the players it has been our privilege to watch over the last 30 years.

Read Mixing It With The Best and see if you agree with our choice...

Where next?

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Read all our County Cricket coverage

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

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Cricket XIs: A team of cricketers that died young

 
There have been many cricketers that have died young – including a number of all-time greats and others that probably would have joined this category if fate had dealt them a better hand.

Here are XII of those that left this mortal coil far too early due to a variety of tragic misfortunes including illness, war, accidents, murder, falling over on a dance floor and suicide.

1. Victor Trumper

The darling of the Golden Age was an absolute master on sticky wickets, scored the first Test hundred before lunch and was indisputably the greatest Australian batsman before Bradman. Despite ill-health he averaged over 60 in his last 68 innings, before finally succumbing to Bright’s Disease in June 1915 at just 37 years old.  

2. Arthur Shrewsbury

Rivalled Grace as the premier English batsman of the 1880’s and captained England seven times in his 23 Tests. He topped the first-class batting averages seven times including in 1902, his final season. The following spring, under the false impression that he had an incurable disease, he shot himself at his sister's home. Shrewsbury was 47.

3. Archie Jackson

The New South Wales batsman emerged at the same time as Bradman and was considered by many at the time to be the better prospect. A masterful 164 on Test debut against England in 1929 suggested that the stylish Jackson would fulfil his immense promise. But his health waned soon after and following a long battle with tuberculosis, Jackson died at the age of 23 in 1933.

4. William ‘Dodge’ Whysall

A close friend of Harold Larwood, Whysall starred in Nottinghamshire’s County Championship triumph of 1929, before being recalled to the England side for the decisive match of the 1930 Ashes series. Just two months later, at the age of 43, Whysall was dead from septicaemia caused by a fall on a dance floor where he had injured his elbow.

5. A.E.J. Collins

Collins may not have attained the status of Trumper or Jackson but he did record cricket’s highest ever individual score, smashing 628 not out as a thirteen year old in a house match at Clifton College in June 1899. Like many of his generation, Collins did not survive World War I, dying at the age of 29 at the First Battle of Ypres on 11 November 1914.

6. Claude Tozer

An immensely talented schoolboy cricketer who would have played more first-class cricket but for the demands of medical school and World War I. Tozer survived the War, had just been named as New South Wales captain and was tipped for a place in the Australian Test side to face England. But then murder most foul as his deranged mistress and patient shot him dead at the age of 30 in December 1920.

7. Norman Callaway

Like Taylor, Callaway may not be a household name but he does hold a notable cricket record. He made his first-class debut at the age of 18 in February 1915 for New South Wales against Queensland and promptly became the first man to score a double-century on his first-class debut. Cricket was then abandoned in Australia due to World War I, and by dint of Callaway being killed at the Second Battle of Bullecourt in France in 1917; he has the highest first class average on record of 207.

8. Montague Druitt

Druitt was found drowned in the River Thames at the age of 31 in 1888. A keen all-rounder, he represented Winchester College, and the Morden Cricket Club of Blackheath amongst others. But Druitt may have led a sinister double-life with many Jack the Ripper experts concluding that Druitt was the man responsible for the infamous Whitechapel murders.

9. Hedley Verity

Arguably England’s greatest ever spinner, Verity took 1,956 first-class wickets at a staggering average of 14.90 and provided the control at one end during the Bodyline series as Larwood and Voce wreaked havoc at the other. He was mortally wounded during the Eighth Army's advance on Catania in World War II and died a few days later on 31 July 1943 reportedly acknowledging that "I think I have played my last innings for Yorkshire." He was just 38.

10. Ken Farnes

A fearsome fast bowler, Farnes took 10 wickets on Test debut at Trent Bridge in 1934 and snared 60 victims in his 15 Tests. He was killed, at the age of 30, in a plane crash in October 1941 while flying with the R.A.F. over Northamptonshire.

11. Albert Cotter

One of the great early fast bowlers, Cotter played 21 Tests and took 89 wickets and once hit an aging W.G Grace with a beamer incurring the wrath of the great man and causing him to walk off the field in disgust. Cotter was another who fell in the Great War - to Turkish fire in October 1917 at the age of 32. He had a premonition of his impending doom too tossing up a cricket ball of mud and announcing "That's my last bowl, blue. Something's going to happen."

12. Ben Hollioake

Who can forget the younger Hollioake’s opening statement as an international cricketer when he hit 63 at Lord’s in an ODI against an Australian side containing Warne, McGrath and Gillespie? He never quite repeated those feats in 2 Tests and 20 ODIs, but who knows what he could have achieved if he hadn’t tragically died in a car crash at the age of just 24 in 2002. 

Where next?

Victor Trumper: All-time Australian Ashes XI - The Openers

The 30 Greatest Batsmen Ever featuring Victor Trumper: Part 1 (30-21), Part 2 (20-11), Part 3 (10-1) 

Hedley Verity: All-time Ashes XI and All-time England Ashes XI - Spinner

Heroes: Hedley Verity

Archie Jackson - The 'Other Bradman'

Heroes: Arthur Carr

Full coverage of the Ashes 2010/11 series

Check out all our Reverse Sweep heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep 

The Worst Australia Ashes XI of the last 30 years

 
Yesterday, we selected our worst England Ashes XI of the last 30 years, today it is the turn of the Baggy Greens:

Andrew Hilditch – Australia’s Chairman of Selectors wasn’t the worst opener to play against England in this period, but he may have been the most stupid. In the 1985 series, David Gower set the trap for the hook and like a punch-drunk boxer, Hilditch fell for the sucker blow every time.

Rick Darling – Just like his hapless namesake in Blackadder Goes Forth, Darling was like a fish out of water at Test level, which he only played because of World Series Cricket. The lasting memory he left on the Ashes was when he almost died at Adelaide during the 1978/79 series. A piece of chewing gum became lodged in his throat before John Emburey came to the rescue.

Trevor Chappell – Poor old Trevor. Despite doubtless losing every backyard game to his immensely talented brothers, the ugly duckling of the Chappell family still managed to play three tests in the 1981 series - scoring only 79 runs at 15.8. His underarm bowling wasn’t required.

Martin Kent – Unlike his namesake Clark, Martin didn’t turn into Superman during his three tests in the 1981 series where he averaged fewer than 30. The luckless Kent then suffered a serious back injury, which forced his early retirement from the game.

Michael Bevan – Surprisingly for such a fine player who excelled in county cricket, Bevan had a woeful Ashes career averaging 11 in six tests, where a weakness against the short ball proved his undoing.

Phil Carlson – Makes our England all-rounder Pringle look like Miller or Sobers. Carlson played two tests in the WSC affected 1978-79 series and floundered against the short ball, scoring 23 runs in four innings. His bowling was no better with only two wickets at 50.

Graham Manou – Drafted in at the last minute at Edgbaston for the injured Brad Haddin in the 2009 series, Manou made such an impression that he immediately lost his role as the back-up keeper.

Shaun Young – With Gillespie and Reiffel injured and Young being close at hand in Gloucester, he was called up for the final test of the 1997 series at The Oval. He scored four runs and bowled eight wicketless overs as Australia crashed to defeat. Other than having a sex change and starring in Bladerunner alongside Harrison Ford, Young has never been heard of again.

Chris Matthews – Australia had a dreadful side in the 1986/87 series and were duly beaten by Mike Gatting’s England. Matthews was one of the journeymen who appeared taking six wickets in two tests at 39.

Murray Bennett – The slow left armer made Xavier Doherty look like a Warne, O’Reilly or Grimmett in his single Ashes test at The Oval in 1985. Took one wicket for 111 as Gower and Gooch made hay in the sun.

Dave Gilbert – Played his solitary Ashes test in the same Oval test of 1985, where he did marginally better than Bennett in taking one for 96. Just pips Joe Angel and Matt Nicholson to a spot in the XI.

A version of this article first appeared in the third and final edition of Cricket Sadist in November 2010.

Where next?

Cricket Zeroes: Andrew Hilditch

All-time composite Ashes XI

All-time Australian Ashes XI: The Openers, Number 3, 4 and 5, All-rounder, Wicketkeeper, Fast bowlers, Spin Kings

All-time England Ashes XI: The Openers, Number 3, 4 and 5, All-rounder, Wicketkeeper, Fast bowlers, Spin King

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

Check out all our other Reverse Sweep heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

The Worst England Ashes XI of the last 30 years

 
The Ashes are the pinnacle for English and Australian cricketers and for close to 130 years the oldest rivalry in sport has produced plenty of spellbinding matches. Some of the finest cricketers ever to play the game like Bradman, Hammond, Warne, Hobbs, Trumper and Botham have fought toe to toe for the little urn.

However, not everyone who has represented Australia and England in the ultimate sporting contest has been blessed with greatness; far from it in fact. Certainly, in the 30 or so years that this writer has been addicted to the fiercest of cricket battles, a number of duffers have donned the Baggy Green or Three Lions cap.

The names that follow are a mixture of the downright obscure, confused selection strategies and the odd surprising name that proved to be a complete Ashes flop.

So without further ado, here are the teams starting with England today and Australia tomorrow:

Mark Lathwell – Heralded as the next big thing, he was drafted into the team for two Tests in the 1993 series and promptly stank the place out. Disappeared as quickly as he had arrived and never got near England selection again.

John Stephenson – One of 29 players called on by England during the disastrous 1989 series, Stephenson played his only test at The Oval scoring 25 and 11. He never played another Test.

Paul Parker – Having secured the urn in 1981, the England selectors decided to experiment with Parker for the final Test at The Oval. He scored 13 in his solitary innings and it certainly proved unlucky for Parker who never received the call again.

Usman Afzaal – Like Samit Patel, fell victim to the selectors aversion to those carrying a few extra pounds, Afzaal admittedly didn’t impress too much in his three tests in the 2001 series - although he did score a fifty at The Oval.

James Whittaker – Another of England’s one cap wonders, the loyal Leicestershire batsman played his only test at Adelaide in 1986 in place of the injured Ian Botham. Unlike Beefy, Whittaker didn’t leave his mark on the Ashes, scoring 11 in his only knock.

Derek Pringle - Pringle was more of a no-rounder than an all-rounder when it came to the Ashes averaging 20 with the bat and 58 with the ball. This writer remembers him being part of the worst England attack ever at Headingley in 1989 – a past it Neil Foster, Phil Newport and Phil De Freitas.

Chris Read – Surprisingly, England haven’t really picked a duffer behind the stumps in the last 30 years. We opt for Read simply because by the time he was finally chosen for the last two tests of the 2006/07 series, his confidence had been shattered by being dropped in favour of Geraint Jones at the start of the ill-fated series. He hasn’t played for England since.

Robert Croft – English (or Welsh) spinners have hardly set the Ashes alight in recent times and Crofty didn’t even raise a spark taking 11 wickets at 52 in seven Ashes tests from 1997-2001. But he can bat, I hear you say. Not against Australia against whom he averaged 9.54. Made Peter Such and Eddie Hemmings look like world beaters in comparison. About as useful as a cat flap in an elephant house.

Jimmy Ormond – Like Afzaal, fell victim to Duncan Fletcher’s dislike of fat cricketers after playing one Ashes test at The Oval in 2001. The one for 115 probably didn’t help matters either. Ormond did leave a mark though with his infamous retort to Mark Waugh, who had welcomed Ormond to the crease "Mate, what are you doing out here? There's no way you're good enough to play for England." Ormond replied "Maybe not, but at least I'm the best player in my own family", prompting much hilarity from Junior’s team mates.

Martin McCague – From a list of useless England seamers including Paul Jarvis, Mark Ilott, Phil Newport and a certain Jonathan Agnew, McCague took the biscuit. Dubbed “the rat who joined the sinking ship” by the Australian press on account of his upbringing down under, McCague may well have been a double agent judging by his shocking performance at Brisbane in 1994.

Mike Smith – We played in a five-a-side tournament for Smith’s benefit and he relayed how he was treated like a stranger in the England dressing room and hardly spoken to when he was called up for the Headingley test in the 1997 series. Graeme Thorpe dropped Matt Elliott in Smith’s third over – Elliott scored 199 and Smith went wicketless in his only test. Falls into the unlucky rather than the downright rubbish category.

A version of this article first appeared in the third and final edition of Cricket Sadist in November 2010.

Where next?

Cricket Zeroes: Martin McCague

All-time composite Ashes XI

All-time Australian Ashes XI: The Openers, Number 3, 4 and 5, All-rounder, Wicketkeeper, Fast bowlers, Spin Kings

All-time England Ashes XI: The Openers, Number 3, 4 and 5, All-rounder, Wicketkeeper, Fast bowlers, Spin King

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

Check out all our other Reverse Sweep heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

County Championship XI of the week #11: Division 2 Half-Term XI

 
Yesterday we named our County Championship Division 1 Half-Term XI. Today we turn our attention to Division 2 and an XI that seems to be comprised of a number of unsung heroes:

Will Jefferson (Leicestershire): 609 runs at 46.84 – Division 2’s leading runs scorer thus far was once talked about as a possible England player when he was at Essex. Those times have long since gone, but the 31 year old has scored freely in a struggling side.

Chris Rogers (Middlesex): 479 runs at 47.90 – It remains a mystery why the Victorian has played just the one Test, but Australia’s loss has proved to be Derbyshire’s and now Middlesex’s gain. Pips Glamorgan pair Gareth Rees and Alviro Petersen, as well as former team mate Wayne Madsen for his spot.

James Taylor (Leicestershire): 461 runs at 46.10 – Others have scored more runs, but has anyone showed their mettle and had their technigue and bottle tested as much as Taylor did when facing down a fearsome Surrey attack on a rare Oval greentop? Taylor’s innings that day proved once and for all that a long Test career awaits.

Rory Hamilton-Brown (Surrey, Captain): 587 runs at 48.91 - One of our ten to watch in 2011. Despite the distraction of the captaincy and having volunteered to open, Hamilton-Brown has shone with the bat, is Division 2’s second highest run scorer and has a Sehwagesque strike rate of 78. That Surrey appear to have woken from their slumber and are challenging for promotion makes it a doubly good first half of the season for the young skipper.

Tom Maynard (Surrey): 560 runs at 56.00 – After his explosive departure from Glamorgan, Maynard has really sparkled in his first season at The Oval and had the pleasure of serving his revenge cold by scoring his maiden first-class hundred against his former county at of all places Cardiff.

Niall O’Brien (Northamptonshire): 417 runs at 83.40 – Ireland’s wicketkeeper has ably demonstrated that there is more than one cricketer in the O’Brien family and pips the likes of John Simpson, James Foster and Mark Wallace to wear the gloves in this XI.

James Harris (Glamorgan): 26 wickets at 21.96, 224 runs at 37.33 – Another of our ten to watch in 2011, Harris is developing into a useful bowling all-rounder. Would have more wickets but for injury restricting him to just five Championship matches and pips Will Gidman and Andrew Hall given he is by far the best bowler of the three.

Claude Henderson (Leicestershire): 26 wickets at 28.26, 321 runs at 40.12 – A slightly contentious pick as Glamorgan’s Dean Cosker has taken more wickets to put his side in the promotion shake-up, but Henderson has done well in a struggling side and offers the added bonus of runs in an XI with an otherwise long tail.

Stuart Meaker (Surrey): 23 wickets at 18.78 - Another contentious pick as many would probably go with the old warhorse Chaminda Vaas. But Meaker’s wickets have come in only four games and his phenomenal strike rate of a wicket every 32.4 balls is just too good to ignore.

Jack Brooks (Northamptonshire): 30 wickets at 22.03 – The benefit of opening the bowling with Vaas has been all too clear for Brooks who is having a glorious season thus far to help inspire his side to the top of the table.

David Masters (Essex): 40 wickets at 20.77 – The leading wicket taker in either division, the experienced opening bowler has once again been the model of consistency despite a faltering return to Division 2 for Essex.

Where next?

Geoffrey Boycott apologises to Michael Yardy

County Championship XI of the week #10: Division 1 Half-Term XI

Ten to watch in 2011: Half-Term report - Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3

Read our previous County Championship XIs of the week

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 XI of the week #9

 
Joe Denly (Kent) – Ended a nightmare run of just 82 runs from eight Championship innings in 2011 to record his first hundred since 2009. Added 74 for good measure in the 2nd innings to help Kent to their first win in Division 2 since the season opener against Essex.

Luke Wells (Sussex) – Promoted to open in the absence of Ed Joyce and proceeded to rack up 174 – the third ton of his rookie Championship season – as part of a 304 run partnership with Goodwin.

Moeen Ali (Worcestershire) – Rob White can count himself unlucky, but Ali's crucial role in his side’s first Division 1 win since 2007 and their first at New Road since 2004 gets him the nod. He top-scored in the 1st innings with 84 and then finished off the run chase with an unbeaten 35 off just 25 balls.

Murray Goodwin (Sussex) – His 274 against Yorkshire was the eighth time in 11 years with Sussex that Goodwin has registered a double hundred.

Ben Stokes (Durham) – First the ecstasy as a career best 185 – his third ton of the season – helped Durham leapfrog Lancashire at the top of Division 1. Then the agony, as a badly dislocated finger puts him out of action for six to eight weeks - robbing Stokes of a possible call-up to the England ODI squad against Sri Lanka. One of our ten to watch in 2011.

Gary Ballance (Yorkshire) – Earns a place in the XI ahead of Dale Benkenstein after his four-hour vigil for 73 not out saved Yorkshire’s bacon on the final day at Hove.

Chris Read (Nottinghamshire) – Once again played a crucial innings when it was most needed to seemingly put Notts in the driving seat at New Road. Alas for Read, on this occasion (unlike against Yorkshire earlier in the season) his unbeaten 120 proved not to be enough for the faltering holders.

Chaminda Vaas (Northamptonshire) – Showed Sri Lanka just what they are missing with a brilliant bowling display in the Division 2 summit meeting with Glamorgan. His ten for 82 simply blew the Welshmen away.

Tim Linley (Surrey) – Surrey may have been without Tremlett, Meaker and (for half of the match Dernbach), but Linley ensured they weren’t missed with ten for 107 in an excellent win at Derby.

Monty Panesar (Sussex) – Just shades Ian Blackwell for a spot in the XI for his sustained excellence against Yorkshire. Monty’s figures in the match 63.3-20-148-7 ensured he easily won the spin duel with Rashid, even if they weren't quite enough to get Sussex over the winning line.

Matt Dunn (Surrey) – Pitched into his first Championship outing when Dernbach received a call from England half-way through the game, the 19 year old didn’t let anyone down. On the contrary, he proved to be a match-winning super-sub with five for 56 to help bowl out Derbyshire for just 99.

Where next?

County Championship XI of the week #8

County Championship XI of the week #7

County Championship XI of the week #6

County Championship XI of the week #5

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

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

County Championship XI of the week #8

 
Marcus Trescothick (Somerset) – Hundreds in each innings against Yorkshire, and his brutal 2nd innings knock of 151 (off just 131 balls) led Somerset’s charge to victory. Narrowly failed to reach cricket’s Holy Grail.

Alviro Petersen (Glamorgan) – When we made-up with the Glamorgan captain after our spat on Twitter, we implored him to score a double hundred. He did just that at The Oval in what by all accounts was a wonderful innings. Good on you, Alviro.

Will Smith (Durham) – A sad tale with a happy ending. Smith abruptly resigned the Durham captaincy halfway through 2010 and didn’t play again last summer. But he is back now and his 179 set up an innings victory against Warwickshire.

Karl Brown (Lancashire) – The likes of Dale Benkenstein, Usman Khawaja and Sam Robson may have scored tons, but Brown’s anchoring innings of 96 on a tricky Rose Bowl pitch gets him the nod for this XI.

Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire) – His golden summer continued with 136 and 80 in the defeat at Taunton. A good long-term bet to eventually replace Matt Prior in the Test side.

Andrew McDonald (Leicestershire) – The game with the Division 2 leaders may have petered out to a draw, but not before McDonald had exhibited his all-round abilities with 164 and 51 not out with the bat and three wickets in Northamptonshire’s only innings.

Ben Stokes (Durham) – Normally more of a batting all-rounder, but starred with the ball at Edgbaston taking seven wickets as Warwickshire were trounced by an innings. One of our ten to watch in 2011.

Adil Rashid (Yorkshire) – In a poor week for spinners, Rashid bagged four first innings wickets and then an unbeaten 51 at Taunton. However, his is a fortunate selection given that he went for 88 in 10.1 wicketless overs in the second innings as he was punished severely by Trescothick.

Kyle Hogg (Lancashire) – Took a stunning 11 for 59 as the leaders cruised to victory at the Rose Bowl including a first innings seven for 28. Not bad for his first Championship outing of the season.

Tim Murtagh (Middlesex) – Eight wickets in the match to nearly help Middlesex to victory at Chelmsford.

Ashley Shaw (Kent) – The 20 year old bagged a five-fer on Championship debut at Canterbury.

Where next?

Marcus Trescothick so close to cricket's Holy Grail

County Championship XI of the week #7

County Championship XI of the week #6

County Championship XI of the week #5

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

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

County Championship XI of the week #7

 
Chris Nash (Sussex) – First Championship ton of the season after six fifties, and it was a vital one too as Sussex chased down a tricky target of 275 at Hove. Is now the leading run scorer in Division 1 with 656 runs at 54.66. Second successive appearance in our XI.

Rory Hamilton-Brown (Surrey) – In a team bereft of openers, it was the skipper who took the responsibility of moving up the order to face down Essex’s total of 548. RHB’s 159 off 195 was therefore even more impressive than the score already suggests. One of our ten to watch in 2011.

Ian Bell (Warwickshire) – Warmed up for the Sri Lanka Tests and showed his immense class with 139 against a strong Notts attack featuring England colleagues Broad and Swann.

Gordon Muchall (Durham) – Struck his first ton of the season with his 175 being the base from which Durham dominated against Worcestershire at New Road.

Alex Gidman (Gloucestershire) – Pips Ian Blackwell and team mate Kane Williamson to the final batting spot for his fluent 168 (off 244 balls) at Grace Road – a week after his brother also made our weekly CC XI.

Graham Napier (Essex) – World Record equaling performance with 16 sixes in a first-class innings And 172 runs came in boundaries in his 130 ball 196. Phenomenal. Cricket’s Six Million Dollar Man?

Phil Mustard (Durham) – Put Durham out of sight at New Road with 101 and then marshalled his bowlers well to earn an innings victory.

James Harris (Glamorgan) – Eight wickets at Lord’s including that of Andrew Strauss to ease pain over Lions omission and send Glamorgan second in Division 2.

Naved-ul-Hasan (Sussex) – 10 for 161 in the match kept Sussex in the game – his potency proving the main difference between the sides as pre-season favourites Somerset were beaten at Hove.

Gary Keedy (Lancashire) – 10 wickets in the Roses match to put a buoyant Lancashire top of the table. Match figures of 77.3-14-177-10 make him the most deserving selection in this XI.

Steve Harmison (Durham) – Grabs the final spot in our XI ahead of Boyd Rankin and James Anyon for his seven wickets at Worcester. If he stays fit, Durham could challenge for the title they won in 2008 and 2009.

Where next?

Farewell and a tribute (of sorts) to Shane Warne

Cricket XIs: Cricketing Criminals 

County Championship XI of the week #6

County Championship XI of the week #5

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

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

County Championship XI of the week #6

 

Another week, another round of County Championship matches and here is our XI of the week.

Marcus Trescothick (Somerset) - A swiftly struck 144 to put his side in command against Durham. Will have been disappointed to have been foiled by the home team's rearguard on the final day.

Chris Nash (Sussex) - 93 and 57 against a strong Nottinghamshire attack featuring Broad and Swann. Got his runs quickly too to help turn a tricky victory target into a comfortable stroll. Needs to start converting good starts into three figures. So far this season he has seven half-centuries and no tons. 

Nick Compton (Somerset) - Did a convincing impression of his illustrious Grandfather to stroke a career best 254* in a marathon nine-hour innings at Chester-le-Street.

Mohammad Yousuf (Warwickshire) - Was a class apart on a treacherous Edgbaston pitch with 109 and 68 in a match where there were only three other scores over 50.

Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire) - One of our 10 to watch this season celebrated his call-up to the Lions squad with a fifty in each innings as well as outbowling team-mate Graeme Swann in the reigning champions surprise defeat at Hove. 

Will Gidman (Gloucestershire) - Unbeaten and unbowed during his side's innings defeat to Northamptonshire, recording a maiden first-class ton (116*) and following that with an undefeated 81 in the second innings. 

Niall O'Brien (Northamptonshire) - Proved there is more than one decent cricketer in the family with 166 from number eight as Northamptonshire went top of Division 2. Pips Mark Wallace to wear the gloves in this week's XI.

Dominic Cork (Hampshire) - The old warhorse was close to heroic with match figures of 56.4-13-126-8 at Headingley, before showing the application his top order had lacked by staying at the crease for 75 minutes in the final session to help secure the draw. Not bad for a 40 year old.

James Anyon (Sussex) - Took eight wickets to send the previously unbeaten champions Nottinghamshire tumbling to defeat at Hove.

Monty Panesar (Sussex) - He may not have got the wickets the sheer quality of his bowling deserved, but his match return of 46-19-81-5 helped others like Anyon flourish at the other end. Almost back to his best. 

David Masters (Essex) - Eight wickets for the experienced and reliably consistent opening bowler as Essex drew with Derbyshire.

Shouts also to Michael de Venuto (86 and 112 for Durham against Somerset), Ravi Bopara (a second successive Championship ton - this time against Derbyshire),  Ben Stokes (a brilliant 120 to help Durham escape with a final day draw), Chris Metters (six for 65 on debut for Warwickshire), James Harris (five wickets and another fifty as Glamorgan trounced Kent) and Azeem Rafiq, whose bowling is far more impressive than his Tweets (six for 91 in 42 tight overs against Essex). 

Where next?

Cricket XIs: Cricketing Criminals 

10 reasons why Ian Botham may have worn sunglasses at the premiere of 'From the Ashes'

County Championship XI of the week #5

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

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep