West Indies allrounder Stafanie Taylor is women’s Player of the Year in The Cricketer Awards

1. THE CRICKETER AWARDS 2011 How the XI was picked There is
COMPOSITE TEST XI Matt Prior England
Wicketkeeper
no room for top-10 Indian quick bowlers Mission
Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar below
in the composite XI. They are ranked below
accomplished
12 Tests, 653 runs @ 54.41 Tremlett, Anderson and Broad, so Kumar is
Hs 126, 3x100, 3x50; 50ct, 2st STAFANIE TAYLOR recently stated
dropped for spinner Rehman for balance that she wants to be the best
Top moment No one is loudly lamenting and Zaheer loses out as we’ve
women’s cricketer in the world.
the lack of England opportunities for gone for six batsmen rather Women’s
than five out-and-out Many believe that the 20-year-old
England’s world
Chris Read anymore, and it’s all down West Indies allrounder has already Player of the
bowlers, with Watson as Year
to Prior. His exuberant twin innings of the fifth bowler. achieved her ambition.
71 and 103* at Lord’s against India, plus Standing second in the Stafanie Taylor
a flawless keeping display, must rank as international batting rankings and
one of the finest all-time performances James Anderson England sixth in the bowling, Jamaican-born Taylor was also voted
by an English wicketkeeper. the ICC’s Women’s Cricketer of the Year in September.
11 Tests, 52 wkts @ 26.30
What we said “He more than anyone best 5-65, 1x5w She has an outstanding record in one-day cricket over
Eight Englishmen and no Indians: picked from our Top 20 players, Daniel embodies this upwardly mobile, the 12 months to August 31, 2011, scoring 636 runs in
unified, England team.” John Stern, Top moment Anderson’s 24 Ashes 12 matches, with one hundred and five half-centuries
Brigham takes you through the best composite Test XI from the last 12 months following his Lord’s performance against India. wickets showed he had the tools – great at an average of 70.66. In the 50-over Women’s Cricket
Next-year goals Putting his hand up for big pointy ones – to be as effective Challenge in South Africa last October she embarked on
some sort of England captaincy. Everyone abroad as in England. His opening salvo a remarkable run of scores, starting with 147 against the
else has, so his reticence can only be on the first morning of the Adelaide Test, Netherlands and followed by 72 against Ireland, 68 not
Alastair Cook England Ian Bell England Misbah-ul-Haq Pak Captain construed as looking highly suspicious … blowing away Ponting and Clarke, was out against Sri Lanka, 20 against the tournament winners
the best of his many unplayable spells. South Africa and 83 against Pakistan. Over the year she
12 Tests, 1,504 runs @ 94.00 12 Tests, 1,164 @ 97.00 6 Tests, 632 runs @ 90.28
Hs 294, 6x100, 4x50 Hs 235, 5x100, 5x50 Hs 102*, 1x100, 7x50
Abdur Rehman Pakistan What we said “Only perhaps Dennis took 17 wickets at an average of 14.23 and an economy
Lillee can rival him for diversity and rate of 2.6 per over in the 50-over format.
6 Tests, 29 wkts @ 31.82, best 4-65
Top moment It’s like asking Paul Top moment Bell may not have Top moment Having the chance to flexibility as well as potency.” While Taylor has still to prove herself consistently
McCartney to name his favourite rampaged across LA with a casual wit, captain Pakistan is the cricketing Top moment Perhaps the most Simon Hughes, after Anderson’s 5 for 65 against the leading four women’s nations (England,
Beatles song. Cook may have scored but this once meek batsman has finally equivalent of a marriage proposal surprising inclusion, but Rehman’s against India at Lord’s. Australia, India and New Zealand) she made a big
Test Team Next-year goals Mastering the
two double-hundreds this year but snapped and channeled the spirit of from Henry VIII. Yet Misbah has slow-left armers have been a constant, impression against India in January in a five-match ODI
of the Year
his 189 at Sydney stands out, proving Michael Douglas’s anti-hero in Falling done an unruffled job since he was grinding source of comfort for his subcontinent; inventing the wibble ball. series. In the opening game in Mumbai she made a
his runs in the first two Tests were Down. His 159 at Trent Bridge against appointed following the spot-fixing captain Misbah. His finest performance match-winning 85 not out – an innings she considers her
certainly no fluke. India was dominant and vital. fall-out. His century at Basseseterre was taking six wickets (and out-bowling Chris Tremlett England best yet – and then contributed scores of 83 and 46 plus
What we said “It was in the neglected What we said “Ian Bell is the man for led to Pakistan’s second Test win in the fellow left-armer Daniel Vettori) at nine wickets with her offspin in the series.
7 Tests, 36 wkts @ 24.22
art of leaving the ball that Cook gave all seasons. Rain, shine, seam, spin, Caribbean since 1988. Hamilton to seal a 10-wicket win Taylor took the award from several strong contenders:
best 6-48, 2x5w
his bat-on-ball happy opponents a blocking or biffing, he can turn his What we said “He has been the against New Zealand. Lydia Greenway, voted England’s women’s cricketer
lesson.” Gideon Haigh, after Sydney. blade to any requirement.” John Stern, last man standing, he has played What we said “Rehman provides great Top moment The first tangible sign of the year for 2011; Shelley Nitschke, the Australian
Next-year goals Carrying on as after Bell’s 331 series runs against Sri Lanka. rearguards and he has seen heart control and is the perfect accomplice that Chris Adams’ revolution at Surrey allrounder who recently retired from international cricket;
he is (forget about the scoring rate), Next-year goals From 32 to 65 to 119, break.” Osman Samiuddin, after Misbah led for Saeed Ajmal.” Tony Cozier, after was working was the turnaround in Greenway’s England captain, Charlotte Edwards; and Cri-
and aiming for a great-granddaddy Bell has almost doubled his yearly Pakistan to a series win in New Zealand. Rehman impressed in the West Indies. Tremlett’s performances and attitude zelda Brits, of South Africa. The Cricketer sought the views
hundred (known as a triple-century average in each of the last three years: Next-year goals Keeping calm and Next-year goals Showing Graeme following his move from Hampshire. of national coaches and leading observers of the game in
by unfashionable types). 240 has a nice ring to it. carrying on; avoiding the guillotine. Swann who the real No.1 spinner is. Many still thought he was too reticent deciding the award. David Chappell
AFP/GETTY IMAGES (15)
Top team: left to
Shane Watson Australia Kevin Pietersen England right Alastair Cook,
Eoin Morgan England Stuart Broad England when called upon at Perth but a
combination of accuracy and hostility
7 Tests, 706 runs @ 54.30 12 Tests, 1,055 runs @ 70.33 Shane Watson, 7 Tests, 362 runs @ 40.22 9 Tests, 35 wkts @ 25.62, best 6-46, 1x5
brought him eight wickets.
Hs 126, 1x100, 6x50; 5 wkts @ 60.60 Hs 227, 3x100, 5x50 Ian Bell, Kevin Hs 104, 1x100, 3x50 239 runs @ 34.14, Hs 74*, 3x50
What we said “He relentlessly hits a
Pietersen, Misbah-
Top moment Five scores between 50 Top moment Pietersen scored only ul-Haq, Eoin Top moment Four years ago Morgan Top moment Broad’s Ashes-winning 5 length and at his height that is all he
and 59 contributed to the belief that 659 runs at 36.61 in the previous 12 Morgan, Matt Prior, was making a six-ball duck for Ireland for 37 at The Oval in 2009 was starting needs to do.” Gideon Haigh, after the Ashes.
if you wanted an opener to score a months, with no hundreds (not even a Abdur Rehmann, against Bermuda in the World Cricket to feel like a future pub question until Next-year goal Keeping his place
good-looking half-century and then mummy one). Then came the ultimate Stuart Broad, League Division One. This year he made he embraced a fuller length against ahead of Finn and Bresnan; finally
get out, Watson was your man. But, cathartic moment: a scintillating James Anderson, a Test century for England against the India. His allround, matchwinning proving that he can open his mouth
occasionally, he’s much better than 227 from 308 balls at Adelaide on, Chris Tremlett No.1-ranked Indians. His best knock performance at Trent Bridge wider than any other bowler see above.
that, especially his skilful 126 against predictably, the biggest stage – was his 88-ball 70 in the second innings (108 runs from 98 balls, 8 for 76)
Sharpest
India at Mohali in October. an Ashes Test. at Trent Bridge, coming in when the was close to perfect. ICC Test Team of the Year ALTERNATIVE Analysis of the
What we said “Watson was again a What we said “When he steps from pressure was on. What we said “His team-mates were all AWARDS
Cook, Amla, Trott, Tendulkar, Year “We played
victim of the 90s when his uniquely the crease his stumps become an What we said “Morgan is one of the too aware of how his interventions with
Sangakkara (capt, wk left), de Australian Spinner like dicks really.”
brutal beauty was in full flow.” Sam irrelevance. You never see them.” Benj outstanding young batsmen in the bat and ball had changed the course of
Villiers, Kallis, Broad, Swann, of the Year Nathan New Zealand coach
Collins, after Watson’s 95 at Perth in the Moorehead, after Pietersen’s 85 v Sri Lanka at world today. He has timing, dexterity the series.” Dileep Premachandran, after
Steyn, Anderson Only three Lyon outshone Nathan Mark Greatbatch
third Ashes Test. the Rose Bowl. and pro-activity.” Simon Hughes, ahead the Trent Bridge Test.
players – Cook, Broad and Anderson Hauritz, Xavier Doherty, after losing ODI
Next-year goals The miracle Next-year goals Giving arch-nemesis of the Sri Lanka Test series. Next-year goals Staying fit, as he’s
– make both teams. We’d back our Michael Beer and Steve series 0-4 to
conversion – turning those and South Africa captain Graeme Smith Next-year goals Ensuring his starting to look a little injury prone.
team to win a Test series against the Smith to win this hotly Bangladesh
Peckham Spring fifties into something to yarp about in the Test technique is as sound as his attitude. Improving his tweeting; he has 170,000
ICC’s lot, but what do you reckon? contested award.
Champagne hundreds. series next summer. Not having to talk about hurling. fewer followers than KP. Embarrassing.
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