Photo Credit: Professional Cricketers’ Association
Mulder and Winfield-Hill lead the August standings
The four best men’s and women’s domestic players have been announced and the vote is now open for the PCA’s Player of the Month award for August with players from The Hundred and Royal London Cup taking centre stage.
Leicestershire’s Wiaan Mulder, Northern Superchargers’ Adam Lyth, Middlesex’s Stevie Eskinazi and Oval Invincibles’ Will Jacks have been ranked as the top four men’s players for their performances in August. A trio of Invincibles’ players have been ranked in the top four in the women’s award with Lauren Winfield-Hill, Suzie Bates and Alice Capsey being nominated along with Northern Superchargers’ Laura Wolvaardt.
The players are selected by the PCA’s Most Valuable Player Rankings, which picks out the game’s top performers across every single fixture which forms the rankings for each competition, as well as an overall table which is how the top four is selected. The MVP takes into account batting, bowling and fielding contributions as well as match defining contributions using a unique algorithm developed with CricViz.
The PCA Player of the Month is decided by public vote on thepca.co.uk – with the poll closing on Saturday 3 September at 11am.
Men’s PCA Player of the Month
Below is a breakdown of the achievements of the top four men’s players in the table for the month of August:
Wiaan Mulder (Leicestershire)
The Leicestershire all-rounder has had an incredible August in the Royal London Cup, so it’s easy to see why he tops the MVP Rankings by such a significant amount.
Mulder scored 533 runs at an average of 88.9 alongside taking 14 wickets at 28.9 to give him a huge total of 178 MVP points – 43 points clear of second place.
The South African won a Match MVP award for his fabulous knock of 116 not out off 100 balls including 14 fours and three sixes against Middlesex as well as taking 4-47 with the ball giving him 39 points.
The 24-year-old also produced impressive knocks of 81 off 71 against Kent and 71 not out off 65 against Surrey.
Adam Lyth (Northern Superchargers)
The Northern Superchargers opening batter topped The Hundred MVP Rankings for August but finished second overall for the month with 135 points.
Scoring 299 runs with a strike rate of 175.9 at an average of 37.4 including three half-centuries, Lyth also topped the six hitting table alongside Dawid Malan with 20 maximums each in The Hundred group stages.
The big-hitting left hander also won three Match MVP awards including picking up 23 points against Manchester Originals for his 51 off 30 balls.
The 34-year-old’s most impressive innings came against the Oval Invincibles as he smashed 79 off 33 ball with eight sixes.
Stevie Eskinazi (Middlesex)
In third place on the MVP Rankings for the month and the second player from the Royal London Cup is Middlesex’s Stevie Eskinazi with 129 points.
The leading run scorer in the competition produced a phenomenal 658 runs at a staggering average of 94 which included four hundreds, one fifty, 79 fours and 14 sixes.
The Middlesex opener and captain for the competition scored a career best 182 off 136 balls including 17 fours and six sixes against Surrey to win the Match MVP and add 35 points to his total.
The 28-year-old won an incredible four Match MVPs throughout the group stages with performances of 146 not out against Durham, 135 against Nottinghamshire and 102 vs Warwickshire.
Will Jacks (Oval Invincibles)
The Oval Invincibles batter impressed throughout The Hundred scoring 128 points in the August Rankings.
The 23-year-old opener scored 261 runs at an average of 43.5 with a strike rate of 171.7 which included one special hundred and two fifties.
Jacks won three Match MVP awards during the month for knocks of 81 off 45 balls against Welsh Fire and 54 off 38 against London Spirit.
However, his most impressive innings came at The Kia Oval against Southern Brave where he scored a jaw-dropping 108 not out off 48 balls including eight sixes, his century earned him a record-breaking 67 MVP points – the highest total scored in a Hundred match.Please select your Men’s PCA Player of the Month for AugustWiaan MulderAdam LythStevie EskinaziWill Jacks
Women’s PCA Player of the Month
To help make your decision on who to vote for in the women’s category, below is a quick glance at the four nominee’s achievements in August which included six group stage games in The Hundred:
Lauren Winfield-Hill (Oval Invincibles)
Leading the way in the Women’s Rankings with 83 points is Oval Invincibles’ Lauren Winfield-Hill. With an impressive 214 runs at an average of 71.3 alongside four stumpings and a catch, Winfield-Hill sits deservingly at the top.
The Invincibles’ keeper-batter won two Match MVP awards during The Hundred. Against London Spirit the opener picked up 29 points for her 44 not out off 28 balls with a catch and a stumping. She also took the Match MVP for a brilliant knock of 74 not out off 42 balls in a nine wicket win over the Northern Superchargers.
Suzie Bates (Oval Invincibles)
The Oval Invincibles’ skipper sits four points behind her teammate with 79 points thanks to scoring 229 runs at an average of 45.8.
The New Zealander also picked up a Match MVP award and 24 points towards her tally for 41 off 32 balls and a run out in a five wicket win over Trent Rockets.
Bates’ best innings came against Manchester Originals where she smashed 79 not out off 47 balls including nine fours and two sixes.
Laura Wolvaardt (Northern Superchargers)
Northern Superchargers’ Laura Wolvaardt finished just a single point behind Bates on 78.
The South African was the leading run scorer in The Hundred with 286 runs at an average of 71.5 including two half centuries.
The 23-year-old didn’t pick up any Match MVP awards but came extremely close against Manchester Originals on her way to 90 not out off 49 balls including 13 fours and two sixes in a seven wicket victory.
Alice Capsey (Oval Invincibles)
The 2021 cinch PCA Women’s Young Player of the Year winner continues to impress, finishing August with 75 MVP points.
With 93 runs at an average of 31 and six wickets at 13.7 as well as 16 fielding points during the month, Capsey continues to showcase her fantastic all-round abilities.
The 18-year-old may not have won any Match MVP awards but had a fantastic game against Northern Superchargers scoring 25 not out off eight balls, taking a catch and figures of 1-6. She also impressed with 3-15 against Birmingham Phoenix.
Find out more about the PCA MVP Rankings and view the men’s and women’s tables.
Name of Author: Professional Cricketers Association
The Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), founded in 1967 by former England fast bowler Fred Rumsey as the Cricketers’ Association, represents past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales. In the 1970s, the PCA established a standard employment contract and minimum wage for professional cricketers. It also helped create a pension scheme in 1995 and launched the magazine All Out Cricket and the ACE UK Educational Programme in 2002.
