The Cricketer Magazine – June 2018

STAR MAN

JOS BUTTLER

PPI RANK: 

STAR MAN

MOHAMMAD NABI

PPI RANK: 

STAR MAN

SEEKKUGE PRASANNA

PPI RANK: 

STRIKE-RATE 145.0 68.1% 6.61

COMPETITION

WIN RATE ECONOMY

Having won the Blast in 2015, the Lightning
have failed to get out of the North Group in
the two years since. That will be fi rst item on
the agenda for Glen Chapple and new captain
Liam Livingstone, who took over from Steven
Croft, in 2018. A meagre return of fi ve wins out
of 14 in last season’s tournament was simply not
good enough. After being denied his services
by Cricket Australia last year – the governing
body determined that playing in the Blast would
do no good to a knee injury – allrounder James
Faulkner is in the ranks this time around, having
penned a two-year deal. He will add fi repower
towards the end of the innings with the bat and
more than a dollop of bowling intelligence to
the Lancashire attack. Much of Lancashire’s
chances will depend on the availability of Jos
Buttler, who averaged over 50 in 12 innings with
a strike-rate of 144 last season. With England in
limited-overs action against India for the fi rst half
of July, and with Buttler back in the Test ranks, it is
feasible that he could be limited to as few as three
matches - against Yorkshire, Worcestershire and
Nottinghamshire at the backend of July. SM

English T20’s most successful county have fallen

away a little in the competition in recent seasons

• they are without a fi nals day appearance since
  their most recent title in 2011 - but by getting
  out of the North Division in 2017 they suggested
  that an upturn in fortunes might not be too far
  away. The club’s overseas recruits for this season,
  Mohammad Abbas of Pakistan and Afghan
  allrounder Mohammad Nabi, look shrewd
  acquisitions. Abbas has already displayed a
  knack for the lines and lengths needed in English
  conditions, albeit in the Test arena, while Nabi’s
  performances across T20 franchise cricket have
  provided evidence that his fi rst experience of the
  Blast will not go unnoticed – a career economy rate
  of 6.85 across 162 matches going with a useful lower-
  order strike rate of 139.36 and average of 21.65 with
  the bat. Paul Nixon understands T20 better than
  most, having been a part of the Foxes squad which
  dominated the early years of T20 in the mid-2000s
  and having coached overseas in the Caribbean
  Premier League. He has shown himself to be ruthless
  already this term, ditching Michael Carberry as
  captain, Paul Horton taking the reins. SM

Northants, champions in 2013 and 2016, have

been among the canniest recruiters in county T20,

but scant resources means they need the stars

to align if they are to mount another challenge.

Last season they started sluggishly with defeat by

Derbyshire, and Adam Lyth’s 161 knocked them

out unexpectedly before the quarter-fi nals. And

this spring their form in both Championship and

Royal London Cup has been auspiciously bad. One

thing they will try to do is wrap their important but

slightly injury-prone players – like Richard Gleeson

and Richard Levi – in cotton wool for T20, which

the club relies on to bring in the crowds. Northants

have again opted for an overseas unorthodox

spinner, in Seekkuge Prasanna. But they have

dispensed with Azharullah, pivotal death bowler

in two title wins. It is a big tournament too, for Ben

Duckett and Steven Crook, both out of contract at

the end of the year. The head coach, David Ripley,

has forged an excellent reputation on the back

of Northants’ T20 success, and another strong

showing should leave him in a good position for a

coaching role with one of the new 100 entities.

James Coyne

Lancashire Lightning

Coach Glen Chapple
Captain Liam Livingstone
Overseas Joe Mennie (A), James Faulkner (A)
Last season Group stage

Leicestershire Foxes

Coach Paul Nixon • Captain Paul Horton

Overseas Mohammad Abbas (P),

Mohammad Nabi (A)

Last season Quarter-fi nals

Northants Steelbacks

Coach David Ripley

Captain Alex Wakely

Overseas Seekugge Prasanna (SL)

Last season Group stage

Jos Buttler 30

Keaton Jennings 533

James Faulkner 92

Liam Livingstone 228

Steven Croft 287

Dane Vilas 516

Karl Brown 371

Jordan Clark 380

Tom Bailey 739

Stephen Parry 309

Matt Parkinson 468

Colin Ackermann 213

Mark Cosgrove 251

Michael Carberry 289

Cameron Delport 50

Mohammad Nabi 9

Mark Pettini 562

Tom Wells 485

Lewis Hill 588

Ben Raine 586

Gavin Gri ths 511

Dieter Klein 688

Richard Levi 154

Adam Rossington 239

Ben Duckett 235

Alex Wakely 335

Josh Cobb 272

Steven Crook 399

Rob Keogh 456

Rory Kleinveldt 176

Seekkuge Prasanna 199

Graeme White 554

Richard Gleeson 232

2017 run-rate 8.44 2017 economy 8.22 2017 run-rate 8.10 2017 economy 8.38 2017 run-rate 8.61 2017 economy 8.97

STRONGEST XI STRONGEST XI STRONGEST XI

Team rating

3,953

Team rating

4,232

Team rating

3,251

Prediction: Group stage Prediction: Group stage Prediction: Quarter-fi nal

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