CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Fri Dec 15, 2017 4:35 pm

Unfinished business from 2016.

Australia hosted Pakistan for the New Year Test at the SCG, which completed a curious series where the tourist's performances oscillated erratically and they were 2-0 down even before they made their seasonal resolutions. Hard to credit that the 20 year Matt Renshaw who made his debut Test ton in Sydney (183) has already been dropped. Australia made a typical home ground total (538-8), featuring three centurions (also Warner, and Handscomb, who has now been left out too).

Younis Khan said goodbye to Australia with a lone hand unbeaten 175 in reply, but Josh Hazlewood led the Australian bowlers to a 220 run victory, supported by Steve O'Keefe, who has also been discarded.

With South Africa and Australia freezing out the other's wish to host their rivals for New Year, both sides invited transitional Asian sides. Sri Lanka lost over Boxing Day to South Africa, and were embarrassingly outclassed in the two 2017 Tests in Cape Town, and Jo'burg (where JP Duminy made 155 in a topsy turvy year for him). A couple of unexpected facts: Dean Elgar scored more runs this year than Virat Kohli, and Kagiso Rabada was the leading wicket taking fast bowler.

The tradition of the New Year Test wasn't enhanced in either country.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Sat Dec 16, 2017 4:51 pm

January.

New Zealand had decided to play limited overs games over the holiday period, and the Kiwis swept those on the way to beating Bangladesh 2-0 in a pair of Tests in January. These were Bangladesh's first Tests after beating England in Dhaka last October and those wondering if they could export their home form to the green fields of Wellington and Christchurch were given an emphatic no.

The series started well for the Tigers at the Basin Reserve with a partnership of 359 between Shakib al Hasan (217) and Mushfiqur Rahim (159)- both rarities in Bangladesh's history, playing international cricket into their thirties. In reply, Tom Latham kicked off a fine year (in which he also broke through in white ball games) with 177. The visitors carried a small lead into the second innings but gave way to 160 all out. Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor knocked off most of the 217 needed to win. It was a most emphatic fall to earth.

The New Zealand pace quartet of Boult, Southee, Wagner and de Grandhomme blew Bangladesh away in Christchurch. Neil Wagner in particular had an outstanding twelve months in Tests
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Sun Dec 17, 2017 6:11 pm

February.

One of the more interesting series of the year began in Pune where Australia unexpectedly beat India. Not just beat them but prevailed hugely, by 333 runs. In a low scoring Test, no one else got near Steve Smith's second innings ton, but the game was most remarkable for Steve O'Keefe's match figures of 12-70 (6-35 in each innings).

On spinning pitches, runs were hard to come by throughout. Jadeja and Ashwin took 46 wickets over four Tests as India slowly hauled the Australians in to win with victories in Bengaluru and Dharamsala, but Australia stood their ground well, and Smith's unbeaten 178 over 512 minutes in Ranchi, supported by Glen Maxwell's ton was key in holding on for a draw. Cheteshwar Pujara's double hundred in reply ensured no slip ups for the hosts. Smith made another ton in his side's defeat in picturesque Dharamsala.

India had prepared for Australia earlier in February by playing a one off Test against the emergent Bangladesh, where a double hundred for Virat Kohli and single tons by Murali Vijay and WP Saha saw India to 687-6 over nearly two days, before Ashwin and Jadeja finished the job.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby bigfluffylemon » Sun Dec 17, 2017 11:55 pm

Good stuff AC
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Wed Dec 20, 2017 4:09 pm

Cheers bfl!
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Wed Dec 20, 2017 4:37 pm

March.

Bangladesh might have waded way out of their depth in New Zealand, but 2017 was a hugely auspicious year for them, including earning their first ever win against an Asian Test side, with a 4 wicket win in Colombo against Sri Lanka. Probably for Sri Lanka that game also served as the lowest point of their decline so far. 194 from Kusal Mendis and nine wickets in the match for Rangana Herath put the hosts ahead at Galle. Bangladesh drew level after Sri Lanka were restricted to 338, with the Bangladesh seamers playing a rare hand. The tourists eclipsed this by 129 thanks to a lower order recovery led by Skakib al Hasan (116). Set a tricky 191 to win, Bangladesh just got there, led by a rapid 82 by Tamim Iqbal.

Acknowledgement is due for brilliant years for Mushfiqur, and Shakib (with bat and ball).

A March Test in Dunedin must be the cricket equivalent of a wet winter's night in Stoke in football. The status of five day cricket in New Zealand was made apparent by this late, late summer three Test series. There were two draws, but South Africa won at the Basin Reserve as New Zealand's great period in Tests seemed to stall. Still, Kane Williamson fleshed out his stats. Credit to slow left armer Keshav Maharaj who was the leading wicket taker in a country normally hostile to the slow bowler.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Thu Dec 21, 2017 5:55 pm

April.

For fan of Test cricket, a relatively minor series in April served as a bridging point between the big contests of the year, those between India and Australia and England and South Africa. Sort of like Wake Island in the Battle of the Pacific. This was Pakistan's three Test visit to the Caribbean, which was closely contested but won 2-1 by the visitors after they prevailed in the decider in Dominica. This was a productive series for Roston Chase for West Indies in particular, one which he failed to match away from home in the English summer. Yasir Shah was the key bowler for Pakistan.

Pakistan's leading run scorer was Misbah-ul-Haq, and it was in Dominica that cricket said farewell to two great Pakistani cricketers in Misbah and Younis Khan, both fascinating figures in the unpredictable history of Pakistan cricket.

There followed two months without any Test cricket at all as the best eight ODI sides in the world met in England for the Champions Trophy. West Indies hadn't qualified. Pakistan astonishingly took the trophy home with them, beating India in the final having been fancied by hardly anyone. Their cricket as ever remains confusingly topsy turvy.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Sat Dec 23, 2017 6:19 pm

July.

England got a new Test cricket captain in Joe Root and a change in fortune at last in a four Test series with South Africa starting at Lord's. Garry Ballance was back for England at the captain's request, but briefly. South Africa looked a team in transition, with Dale Steyn and AB de Villiers missing and Faf du Plessis absent at some points of the tour. The tourist's batting was too weak to resist James Anderson's magnificent late career resurgence.

At the home of cricket, Joe Root's 190 was just too many runs on the board for the South Africans to match, and all summer, the lower middle order of Bairstow, Stokes, Moeen and Woakes rarely gave way. But it was Moeen with the ball who was decisive at Lord's. When du Plessis returned at Trent Bridge, South Africa levelled, but it was brief respite. England won emphatically at the Oval thanks to a fabulous debut from Toby Roland Jones, who had long deserved a chance and was given one thanks to an injury to Chris Woakes. England then extended the margin to 3-1 in Manchester where Moeen Ali was made Player of the Series.

In 2017, if India hadn't just played Sri Lanka, chances were they were just about to play them. In July in Sri Lanka, India overwhelmed the hosts in each of the three Tests, winning two by an innings and one by 304 runs. The only limit to Indians scoring runs was whether or not they would get a bat, with Pujara and Dhawan particularly severe. As at home, Pujara and Ashwin took the most wickets, but Mohammad Shami led the seam attack productively.

After the inevitable clean sweep, it felt like Sri Lanka were following West Indies down a steep slope to oblivion, and that India were only going to find engaging challenges away from their own continent. But India would again play Sri Lanka in a series before the year was out.

As is the modern way, Sri Lanka warmed up for the Indians by inviting a lightweight for a little practice sparring. Zimbabwe came to Colombo, but proved resilient, with Clive Ervine making 160 up front for the tourists to ensure a small first innings lead. As ever, Rangana Herath was the bowler to keep Sri Lanka in the contest, but the 391-6 Sri Lanka scored to win was a good effort from their batters. Even though Sri Lanka won, it was Zimbabwe who came away with the kudos.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Wed Dec 27, 2017 3:54 pm

August.

In the English summer there was the unusual circumstance of the later series being contested by the less favoured side, the West Indies. They were consequently denied the traditional pleasure of a trip to Leeds or Chester-le-Street in May. England duly won the series with stalwart Joe Root and Alastair Cook scoring heavily, but mainly thanks to James Anderson's phenomenal form, taking a wicket every thirty five balls, promisingly supported by Toby Roland Jones who took them even faster but was mysteriously dropped for one of the Tests.

But the most engaging Test of the series was West Indies rare away win, in Leeds, where they scored 322-5 in a fourth innings run chase to triumph by five wickets. This was facilitated by the slender target set by England's new skipper Joe Root, of the kind often advised by bored retired players in commentary boxes. The heroes for West Indies with the bat that day were magnificent for them all series, with Kraig Brathwaite making 95 and Shai Hope's 118* a revelation. The latest new dawn for the men from the Caribbean failed to survive their visit to New Zealand in November.

And August doubled up as the month for the underdogs when Bangladesh beat Australia in Dhaka, the first time the green and gold has failed to beat Bangladesh. Shakib al Hasan capped a halcyon twelve months with 84 in the first innings and ten wickets in the match. The Australians levelled the series in Chittagong, thanks to another of the great performances of the year, Nathan Lyon's 13-139.

Another scalp for Bangladesh was they were the only side in 2017 to tame Steve Smith who scored one fifty (58) in four innings and averaged under 30. A rare disappointment in a year when he joined the pantheon of the greats.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Thu Dec 28, 2017 1:37 pm

September.

Following Bangladesh's home win against Australia, they had another chance to test their might outside of familiar Asian pitches when they toured a South Africa team inconsistent enough to win in Australia but lose in England within 12 months. The Tigers proved again to be competitive at home but minnows away. And in 2017, South Africa have proved ruthless scourges of the underdogs.

Bangladesh were way out of their depth with bat and ball with the hosts winning by 333 runs at Potchefstroom and a colossal innings and 254 runs in Bloemfontain. Rare Tests for lesser South African grounds. Dean Elgar and Kagiso Rabada buffed up their impressive stats for 2017. Hashim Amla's pair of tons helped mask his decline. With three home Tests this year against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, debutant Aiden Markham may be the answer to the long standing gap at the top of the order, but could find that 95 average harder to maintain elsewhere.

In a bottom half of the card bout, Pakistan played Sri Lanka in neutral UAE and suffered their second ever series defeat in the desert, and first since 2002 (to Steve Waugh's Australians). With a meeting with India planned further on in the year, this was brief but spectacular respite for Sri Lanka, with slow left armer Rangana Herath again their hero, superbly supported by off spinner Dilruwan Perera. The Pakistanis, without Misbah and Younis, were outbatted, particularly by Dimuth Karunaratne and captain Dinesh Chandimal. The first Test in Abu Dhabi was a thriller with Pakistan bowled out 22 runs sort of their target for 138 by the Sri Lankan spinners, the well upholstered Herath taking 11 wickets in the match.

There was another exciting Test on a turning wicket in Dubai, where a century from Asad Shafiq and 68 from Safraz Ahmed took Pakistan from 52-5 to within 88 of the target only for another collapse of 23-5 to leave them 68 runs short. As ever, for Pakistan, the pendulum swings quickly and often. For Sri Lanka it felt more like the final twitch of a corpse.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Fri Dec 29, 2017 4:33 pm

October.

It is always tempting to invoke fallen empires or Ozymandias when reflecting on the contemporary ignominious strife of the West Indies, and a trip to Zimbabwe presented them only with a plethora of snakes and an absence of ladders. The West Indies had a fair bit to lose against the ultimate minnows having competed well at times in England. The visitors won the first Test (both were played in Bulawayo), though with not much to spare against a side with even more experience of oblivion. Zimbabwe pursued an unlikely 434 to win, and at 219-4 and the returning Brendan Taylor well set, keen students of schadenfreude began to tune in. But Devendra Bishoo, adding four wickets to five in the first innings, squeezed West Indies home by 117 runs.

The second Test was a draw with little plot and meagre box office, most notable for a partnership of 212 for the eighth wicket between Jason Holder and Shane Dowrich who both passed three figures. A record for the West Indies eighth wicket. For Zimbabwe, Pakistan born Sikandar Raza passed eighty twice and took a 5-fer with his off spin. Verdict: West Indies agonisingly slip just a little further into the ravine.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Fri Dec 29, 2017 7:30 pm

Got my first entry. Thanks for that.

OK to send entries now, as the last day of international cricket of the year is upon us.

Should do a team of the year really, maybe next time.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Sat Dec 30, 2017 2:42 pm

Thanks for further entries.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby Arthur Crabtree » Sat Dec 30, 2017 3:36 pm

November.

A year that ended so gloriously for England with the redemption of a draw at the MCG, began- it now seems hard to recall- with defeat at the Gabba. The Australians sensed a weakness in the England top order and drove them back pitilessly through Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. The Ashes were won on the fourteenth day and the casualties were familiar. Without support overhead, the England bowlers proved unable to adapt and too predictable. The England vanguard at the top of the order was too easily breached. And this time, their captain Joe Root and the long middle order were unable to save their comrades.

In Brisbane, Steve Smith's unbeaten 141 single handedly got his team just beyond the old enemy's first innings score and then England collapsed twice to the Australian pace offensive. In Adelaide under lights, the selector's continued faith in Shaun Marsh was rewarded by an invaluable 126* and then the legendary Australian attack of Lyon, Starc, Hazlewood and Cummins were magnificent and brutal in bowling England out twice for under 240. In Perth, there was brief hope when hundreds from Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan saw the tourists past 400, a total then overwhelmed by Steve Smith's 239 and Mitch Marsh's 181, enforcing a lead of 259. England made only 218. The Ashes were gone.

Yet England gloriously rallied in Melbourne in the Boxing Day Test and before huge crowds fought back courageously to draw, led by former skipper Alastair Cook's 244* and five wickets in the game for Stuart Broad. It gave the Australians a bloody nose and plenty to reflect on before the first Test of the New Year in Sydney.

And giving way to great demand, India hosted Sri Lanka over three Tests in November and December. The first Test at Eden Gardens was well contested with Sri Lanka muscling ahead in the first innings, and India inching back into the game towards the end as Sri Lanka struggled to 75-5 in pursuit of 231. India cudgelled a win by an innings and 239 runs in the second Test with Virat Kohli following up a ton in Kolkata with a double in Nagpur, supported by hundreds from Vijay, Pujara (in a brilliant year for him) and Rohit Sharma. There was another double century for Kohli (who made 610 in a three match series) in Delhi, and Vijay made 155, but Sri Lanka rallied well with the bat through Mathews (111) and Chandimal (164) to keep the series defeat to a creditable 1-0. Kudos goes to Dhananjaya, Chandimal, Roshen Silva (on debut) and Dickwella for holding out Ashwin and Jadeja on the final day.
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Re: CMS CRICKET AWARDS 2017.

Postby yuppie » Sat Dec 30, 2017 3:51 pm

Lovely writing AC. Great to read:)
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