By Jack Leahy –
Every year, The Wisden Cricketer selected five players whose performances in the last year are, in numerous criteria, worthy of the title of ‘Cricketer of the Year’.
Yesterday, Wisden announced Tamim Iqbal, Eoin Morgan, Jonathan Trott and Chris Read as their players of the year, awarding only four due to the involvement of the fifth player, believed to be Mohammed Amir, in the Pakistan spot-fixing scandal of the summer.
In their own rights, these are some worthy picks. But it has been a fantastic year for international cricket and we have decided to compile the inaugural UT Cricket Players of the Year selection.
''The Little Master''
Sachin Tendulkar (India)
In omitting the great master of the game, Wisden were presumably wary of bestowing further honours and praise on the game’s most celebrated character. However, while typical compared to his lofty standards, the last year has proven time and time again the enduring class of Tendulkar’s talents. Nearly 38 years of age, Tendulkar was the shining light for India in their first World Cup win for 28 years, notched up his 99th international century, and reaffirmed his unique abilities to capture the hearts and minds of not only his cricketing mad domestic partisans, but the rest of the cricketing world as well.
Dilshan celebrates another landmark
Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka)
Are there any ends to this man’s talents? Having single-handedly redefined the way in which sides set one-day fields, the last year as seen Dilshan make his mark as a top-class test and ODI all-rounder. The fact that he has been given more and more overs to bowl in a side containing three world-class spinners in Angelo Matthews, Muttiah Muralitharan and Agantha Mendis says it all. Centuries flowed at a remarkable run rate and wickets began to tumble and Dilshan took on the key all-rounder role with aplomb. In the likely event that he is awarded the national captaincy after his side’s tour of England in the early summer, it will cap a fantastic period of form for one of Sri Lanka’s brightest stars.
Irish players congratulate Dockrell on dismissing Tendulkar
George Dockrell (Ireland)
What 18-year old Dockrell lacks in stature and reputation he more than makes up for in raw talent. Thrust onto the international stage last April during the World Twenty20 in the West Indies, Dockrell has shown a maturity and composure which belies his age. Key wickets this year include Andrew Strauss, Sachin Tendulkar and (twice) Ramaresh Sarwan, epitomising the new-found refusal of Irish cricket to be overwhelmed by illustrious opponents. Frugal and accurate, it is a shame to think that he won’t make another World Cup appearance in a green shirt until at least 2019. That said, don’t rule out a switch to England colours if the spinner’s stint in Somerset proves fruitful.
Strauss proudly holds the Ashes urn.
Andrew Strauss (England)
Captain fantastic. So long the nearly-men, Strauss’ England stood up to be counted Down Under in sealing a 3-1 series win in Australia in a manner thousands of times more emphatic than the overall result suggests. At the heart of their domination was Strauss’ batting, notching 50+ exactly when it was needed to put pressure on the beleaguered Aussie attack. The series might have been completely different had he and Alastair Cook no doubt as deep as humanly possible to salvage the first Test from an impossible position. Leading England to a win in Australia is, regardless of the current state of Aussie cricket, a huge and notably rare achievement, at times making his opposition captain Ricky Ponting look like a small child in comparison.
James Anderson (England)
Few, myself included, were those who backed Anderson to succeed Down Under, expecting him to crumble on hard pitches and outside the swing-friendly conditions of early summer in England. Since the start of last summer, the so-called ‘Burnley Express’ has established himself as one of the world’s most devastating fast bowlers, terrorising the Aussie top order and finishing the Ashes as the leading wicket-taker. Having proved himself in all varieties of conditions save a fatigue-ridden World Cup campaign on the subcontinent, it is not hyperbolic to say that Rickey Ponting might still be Australian captain had he not been battered and lastingly rearranged by Anderson’s swing bowling.
