2020 Group Stages

As the group stages of the 2020 come to a close I decided to have a look at some of the individual statistics arising from the tournament so far.

 

In terms of runs scored the list was dominated by overseas players, with 3 of the top 4 being overseas imports (McDonald, Guptill and Voges). This is itself isn’t surprising given the counties can employ two overseas players and the better English players were on duty in England test and ODI squads. I thought I’d take a look at some of the English prospects on display.

Alex Hales – Started slowly after his broken jaw but by the end with the help of a big hundred in county cricket was starting to have his name mentioned with a spot in an England t20 squad. Scored his runs quickly from the top order with a strike rate of 145.62(no-one scored more runs at a quicker rate than hales) and regularly got his team off to quick starts. He may need to widen his play against spin, specifically the sweep shot which he is reticent to play, if he wants to step up to international level.

Marcus Trescothick – His normal proficient self and scored his runs very fast. Really is the star of county cricket these days. England misses him greatly in the ODI and T20 formats.

James Vince – Had a very consistent group stage with the dominant Hampshire batting at no.3. Has a wide range of shots and used them well during the competition. Needs to score more runs in first class cricket now, especially as his batting isn’t destructive enough alone to warrant selection in the ODI or T20 games for England.

Steve Davies – A good group stage left behind his poor first class form this season. It’s obvious he has talent in abundance and there can’t be many better players to watch on the circuit. Still hit and miss as he managed three ducks to go with his three fifties and whereas his ability to hit the ball aerially in the one day game is rewarded, it seems to have affected his four day game somewhat where he has become somewhat prone to lame dismissals clipping the ball in the air to fielders in the ring.

Jason Roy – Like Davies, Roy is inconsistent but hits the ball very cleanly and is technically correct. A number of times he raced to fifty but when Surrey needed for him to go and make a definitive contribution he failed, almost without fail holing out on the boundary of spin bowling. Needs to work on his ability to rotate the strike and manoeuvre the ball for the middle overs of one day games as well as showing more responsibility. There’s no doubt he has all the attacking strokes to be a quality player as long as he continues to work on his all-round game. Also an excellent fielder. 

Middle order firepower

The current England ODI and T20 are missing mid-lower order firepower and you would hope the list of top strike rates would throw up some names, unfortunately not. Amazingly Matthew Hoggard leads the table albeit having faced only two deliveries, striking 10 of the 2 balls. Who’d have thought! 

It was mentioned during the recent ODI series why England didn’t have a competent no.6 and 7. A problem Ian Bell had was that he bats at no.3 for Warwickshire in one day cricket and yet England expect him to bat at 6, the same applies to Ravi Bopara. Quite simply, if your good enough and destructive enough you’re always going to be batting higher than 6 or 7 for your county and so it’s always unlikely that you’re going to be an accomplished no.6 or 7 for England when your first placed there.

Someone like Kieron Pollard would be perfect for the current England line up.  During this year’s competition he scored his 178 runs @ 164.81 SR often batting in the last few overs, he also took 10 wickets @ 22.8 avg.  A specialised 6 or 7 he can come in and clear the boundary immediately. He also bowls well, varying his pace and is an excellent fielder.  Sometimes you forget quite how big a gap Andrew Flintoff has left in the team and how valuable someone of his calibre is to the equilibrium of the team.

 

Harry Gurney – Since Ryan Sidebottom’s retirement England have lacked a degree of variation in their attack, Harry Gurney may not be the solution but he was the 2^nd highest wicket taker in the t20 and he does bowl left arm fast. Gurney is by no means a regular in four day cricket but has been a pivotal member of Leicestershire’s bowling attack in one day cricket bowling accurately with good pace. Unlikely to interest England at this stage but his success illustrates the importance of variation in t20 and the trouble right handed batsmen have playing positively against left arm bowlers.

Paul Collingwood – Has the lowest average of all the bowlers on the list and really is a competent one day bowler these days. Possibly could still play a good role for England if he regains some batting form because it’s clear that his bowling is as dependable as ever.

Lewis Gregory – Was often trusted with bowling at the end of the innings for Somerset, Gregory impressed with his pace and his ability to bowl yorkers. At 19 Gregory is an exciting prospect as someone who bowls at a decent pace and is also a decent batsmen, England I’m sure will closely monitor his progress.

Spin's the way to go

In terms of bowling economy rates spinners were again the principal stars and showed just how effective taking the pace of the ball is in the shorter form of the game. Afridi, Croft, Keedy and Botha were just some of the quality spinners performing well. Both Saed Ajmal and Shahid Afridi only played half the allocation of games but both were brilliant for their respective counties. Both bowled at the death for their teams and yet kept brilliant economy rates whilst taking lots of wickets. There are obviously still plenty of chances in county cricket for mystery spinners to take plenty of wickets under the right circumstances. It was good to see two world class one day spinners performing in England and hopefully those who played against them improved as a result of their presence. 

 

Future Prospects

Too Much, Too Young? 

 

It's seems like Ravi Bopara and Luke Wright have been around for ages. It's true in some way, both made their international debuts some 4 years ago and both have been in and out of teams since, unable to force a regular spot, but enough talent to warrant continued persistence by the selectors.

It seems strange that both are still only 26 and yet they both have been around the England setup for seemingly a age and they may just be running out of opportunities. But there is still hope for these two if you ask me. Lets take a look at England's last test team and when they broke into the team and when they cemented their place.

Andrew Strauss – Didn’t make his test debut until he was 27 and except for a brief lull in form in 2007 has been an ever present with very few lulls in form. 

Alastair Cook – Except for a dodgy stomach after two tests Cook has been an ever present, something of an anomaly from someone who started their international career so early at the age of 21.

Jonathan Trott – 28 on test debut, Trott benefited from a lengthy apprenticeship in first class cricket and has been an ever present since and is clearly trying to make up for lost time by amassing a long list of achievements.

Kevin Pietersen – Was 25 on test debut (although like Trott he had to have a long wait for full English status, unlike Trott he would probably have been selected earlier if he was qualified) and benefited from piling up runs in first class cricket, was clearly ready for international cricket when selected.

Ian Bell – Was comparatively young on debut at 22 but didn’t completely secure his place in the team until a couple of years ago in South Africa at the age of 27, having shown immense talent since his debut but frustrating all with his performances. Now mature and potentially England’s best batsmen.

Eoin Morgan – Test Debut at 23, now 24, but by no means has guaranteed his spot in the middle order for career. Still unknown whether he is good enough to make it at test level.

Matt Prior – Was 25 on test debut but after initially impressing was dropped but returned a year later at 26 a better keeper and batsmen and looks likely to hold the wicketkeeper position for many years to come.

Stuart Broad – 21 on debut and has been a relative regular since. Has still to perform consistently to the potential he possesses, averaging 35+ with the ball, and may find he gets a break from test cricket in the near future to return to county cricket and work on his game.

Graeme Swann - First went on tour at 20 but was deemed too immature and not good enough and didn’t return to test cricket again until 2008 when he was 29 and has gone from strength to strength since.

Chris Tremlett – Test debut at 25 and did OK but was too fragile both mentally and physically but after an extended sabbatical returned to great acclaim in the 2010/11 ashes at 29 and looks like the bowler everyone thought he should have been given the gifts that he had at his disposal.

James Anderson – Made his test debut at the youngest age of the current team at 20 but went through many troughs and peaks, in and out of the team, before finally fulfilling his potential in 2010 at the age of 28.

So the ages that the various player nailed down their spots in team are respectively as follows: 27,21, 28, 25,27,?24?,26,??,29,29,28

What does this say? Well that probably regardless of their previous failings, both still has time left to cement a place in the England line up. Whether they can make it is another question, and dependent on both their natural talent, their determination, and a fair slice of luck never goes amiss.

Friendly Return for Duncan?

So Duncan Fletcher returns and with potentially the top coaching job in cricket as the coach of India. He returns to the UK with somewhat mixed emotions for many. Personally I was a pretty big fan of Fletcher even through the tough times at the end of his tenure as England coach because in some respects he revolutionised English cricket. Making the team wholly more professional, picking out certain players who were capable of stepping up to the international level and somehow beating the best team of the last 20 years, Australia, is no mean achievement. For that he will always be remembered fondly; for a number of the press his return will bring about the chance to stick the knife in once again if things don’t go well for India. Obviously I hope England do well and win easily but I hope old Duncan doesn’t have too hard a time, although how much longer he will be coach if England win easily is anyone’s guess.

Test Considerations 

The first test is next week and England’s selection is likely to be easy with the exception of the last bowlers spot. It is likely to be one of Stuart Broad, Steve Finn or Tim BresnanBresnan are alike this season, having returned from injury problems they have both struggled for form and full match fitness. Both picked up wickets this week in county games without particularly impressing the assembled press. 

Tim Bresnan is the player I’d have third on the list, I still have doubts over his fitness and he has had a lack of first class cricket this summer. With only 4 bowlers and a lack of occasional bowlers it would be a disaster if Bresnan were to break down early in a match. He of course does add batting prowess, another positive for Broad over Finn but the top 7 is so strong at present that the batting skills of 8-11 shouldn’t come into much consideration. Broad has played a decent amount of first class cricket this summer but in general has struggled. He seems capable of the odd excellent spell but it’s interspersed with a series of average spells that see him shove a good percentage of his bowls down the leg side. Steve Finn, unluckily for him had no first class game this week and has had to satisfy himself with a couple of run outs in t20 where he has impressed with his pace and control. Personally I would like England to take a gamble with Finn; he is expensive but takes wickets, has had the best season of the three, and India have not seen him yet.