sangakkara goes top of County Championship MVP Kumar Sangakkara’s superb form for Surrey this season has taken him top of the Professional Cricketers’ Association Most Valuable Player Rankings for the Specsavers County Championship. The former Sri Lanka left-hander fell just 16 runs short of equalling the world record of six consecutive first-class centuries in the drawn match against Essex at Chelmsford. Sangakkara’s first innings double century followed two centuries in the match against Middlesex at Lord’s a hundred against Warwickshire at Edgbaston and one in the second innings against Lancashire at the Kia Oval. He was on course to become only the fourth batsman after CB Fry, Don Bradman and Mike Procter to score six in six until he gave a return catch Tom Westley. Sangakkara contributed 54 per cent of Surrey’s first innings runs at Chelmsford and 32 per cent in the second and ended a productive match with 64 rankings points. Those points helped Sangakkara overtake Kent all-rounder Darren Stevens at the top of the PCA MVP for the County Championship and in to second place behind Stevens in the overall rankings. 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. Stevens earned 34 PCA MVP points from Kent’s victory over Sussex at Tunbridge Wells, 22 of them for taking five for 40 in the first innings, his fourth five wicket haul of the season. Hampshire pace bowler Kyle Abbott is in third place in the overall PCA MVP on 224 points, 38 behind Sangakkara after he contributed with bat and ball to the win over Somerset at Taunton. Abbott made 49 – 30 per cent of Hampshire’s first innings 162, and 33 in the second innings and also took four for 49 in the first innings. Abbott is also third in the County Championship rankings on 184 points, one behind Stevens, with the Yorkshire pair of Gary Ballance and Ben Coad in fourth and fifth even though they sat out the last round of matches. Essex seamer Jamie Porter has climbed to sixth in the championship rankings after he took a career-best match return of nine wickets against Surrey. Porter ended the match with 36 which followed a 39 points haul in the win over Hampshire in which he took seven wickets in the match. To see the full MVP table click here.
