MADSEN TOPS PCA MVP RANKINGS IN NATWEST T20 BLAST

Madsen tops PCA MVP Rankings in NatWest T20 Blast Derbyshire’s Wayne Madsen has finished top of the Professional Cricketers’ Association Most Valuable Player Rankings in this season’s NatWest T20 Blast. Although Derbyshire missed out on a place in yesterday’s Finals Day at Edgbaston, Madsen’s outstanding form in their group matches left him clear at the top of the rankings table. He finished the competition with 211 PCA MVP points, 17 more than Samit Patel whose performances on Finals Day in helping Nottinghamshire win the competition for the first time, helped him to leapfrog Glamorgan’s Colin Ingram in to second place. Hampshire captain James Vince finished fifth after he made 56 – his fifth half century of the tournament – and earned 17 rankings points in the semi-final defeat by Nottinghamshire. The PCA MVP Rankings system identifies the match-winners and key influencers of matches throughout the domestic season. The formula takes into account conditions, quality of opposition, captaincy and strike-rates as well as runs scored and wickets taken. Madsen made four half centuries in the 14 group matches and topped 30 in five more innings. He ended the Blast with 526 runs, a Derbyshire record. He was also successfully employed as a bowler with his off-spin, little used in championship cricket, bringing 13 wickets and an economy rate of 7.36. Patel finished the T20 competition strongly, making a valuable 35 in the semi-final and 64 from 42 balls in the final which earned him 18 PCA MVP points and the Player of the Match Award. He weighed in with a wicket against Hampshire to finish Finals Day with a haul of 31 rankings points. Two more Nottinghamshire players, batsmen Alex Hales and Riki Wessels, finished in the top 10 of the Blast rankings. Hales finished seventh with 158 PCA MVP points and Wessels eighth on 155 points, boosted by 11 batting points for his 27-ball 48 in the semi-final. At the start of Finals Day Ingram, the former South Africa all-rounder, appeared best-placed to overtake Madsen but he took only six points from Glamorgan’s semi-final defeat by Warwickshire. Ingram, who finished top of the Blast PCA MVP last year, missed out on the chance to complete a PCA MVP double having topped this season’s rankings in the Royal London One Day Cup. The full NatWest T20 Blast PCA MVP can be viewed here.