RETURN OF PLUNKETT AND MOEEN RUNS KEY FOR ENGLAND Confronted by a minnow less than two years after having lost to the Dutch in a World T20 encounter it was perhaps no surprise that England showed some of the nerves and frailties against Afghanistan that were once all too common. England subsided to 57-6 and 85-7 with the bat but the upside was the team’s ability to fight back from such a parlous position and the opportunity it afforded some of the lower order to shine. Moeen Ali was the man who grabbed the game for England and slowly turned it around alongside David Willey, arguably the best number nine in the tournament. Ali made an unbeaten 41 from 33 deliveries as England posted a respectable 142-7, the 8th-wicket pair adding 57 from 33 balls. Only a year ago Ali was opening the batting for England in the 50-over World Cup. His 128 off 107 balls against Scotland was one of the few high points of a disastrous tournament. This winter – admittedly batting far lower in the line-up – he’s at times struggled to get to double figures. Prior to his 41 in Delhi he had mustered 16 T20 runs from six innings with a highest score of eight. His run of scores read: 0, 0, 0, 1, 7 and 8. In ODIs he batted eight times with a best of 21, while 12 Test innings realised just one fifty and only two scores of 22 or better. He is of course a far better player than those numbers suggest and Wednesday’s innings hopefully heralds a welcome return to form. The other major successful return was that of Liam Plunkett. The Yorkshire paceman’s figures in Delhi were 4-1-12-0 and he was unlucky not to have picked up several wickets. Plunkett’s three T20 games this winter have seen combined figures of 12-1-66-6. That’s a bowling average of 11 and an economy rate of 5.50! The next best on the economy rate charts is Adil Rashid, who has conceded his runs at 6.96 runs per over. Plunkett missed the T20s last summer but he did play five ODIs against a combination of New Zealand and Australia scoring 99 runs at an impressive strike rate of 177 runs per 100 balls (a rate which is more akin to what the more destructive players manage in T20s) and taking six wickets with an economy rate of 6.42. Plunkett is up to sixth in the T20 MVP despite playing just the three games. Willey is a new entry into the T20 top five. His unbeaten 20 and 2-23 went a long way to ensuring England avoided embarrassment against Afghanistan. Willey’s T20 pedigree is well established having taken the County T20 MVP Crown in 2013 when he scored 198 runs at the rate of 164 runs per 100 balls and took 21 wickets with an economy rate of 6.59. His liking for the big occasion was illustrated by his performance in the final that year when he scored 60 off 27 balls before taking 4-9. Rashid, meanwhile, has leapfrogged Jos Buttler to lead the T20 MVP. Rashid has been England’s most consistent bowler taking wickets in every game in which he has bowled and usually putting a brake on the opposition’s scoring rate. Rashid has taken nine wickets with an economy rate of 6.96. He took 2-18 against Afghanistan. ENGLAND T20 MVP PLAYER BAT BOWL FIELD CAPT WINS PLAYED POINTS AV PTS Rashid 1.14 48.99 5 0 5 8 60 7.52 Buttler 42.38 0 11 2 4 7 59 8.48 Root 47.62 -1.30 5 0 4 7 55 7.90 Moeen 9.39 35.49 3 0 4 7 52 7.41 Willey 5.76 33.61 3 0 4 6 46 7.73 ENGLAND OVERALL MVP PLAYER BAT BOWL FIELD CAPT WINS PLAYED POINTS AV PTS Root 266.55 -3.17 17 0 11 23 291 12.67 Stokes 122.08 83.72 10 0 6 17 222 13.05 Moeen 48.23 152.28 9 0 11 23 221 9.59 Broad 25.62 132.39 3 0 2 9 163 18.11 Hales 142.67 0.03 8 0 10 19 161 8.46 For more information on the MVP ranking system please visit www.thepca.co.uk. For more info on this release contact Dave Fulton on 07742106991, dfulton@thepca.co.uk The Formula The MVP is a cumulative points system that rewards players for every run scored, wicket taken and catch held – and, how well they do it. A player achieves bonus points based in certain criteria. An overview of the formula is set out below: Batting + Bowling + Fielding + Captaincy + Winning = Total MVP points Batting: The basis of the batting points take into account runs scored, the rate scored at, and the percentage of the team’s total. Batting bonus points are achieved for reaching a century, achieving a benchmark run-rate (varies per tournament, i.e. 1.5 runs per ball in the Twenty20), and scoring over 30% of a team’s runs Bowling: The basis for the bowling points take into account the number of wickets and economy rates. Bowlers achieve higher points for getting out higher order batsmen Bowling bonus points are achieved for achieving a benchmark economy rate (varies per tournament, i.e. fewer than 6 runs per over in Twenty20), taking 5 or more wickets in an innings, and bowling maidens. Fielding: Points are accumulated for catches, run outs – direct hits, run outs – assists, stumpings, with bonuses for 5 fielding dismissals in an innings. Captaincy: A captain of a winning side will receive one bonus point Winning teams: All members of a winning team receive one bonus point {{ak_sharing}}
