The team make their selections for Test, white-ball, women's, county and young player of the year, as well as choosing their Bob Willis Trophy and T20 Blast teams of the season. And we ask what was the stand-out moment of the summer of 2020...
HUW TURBERVILL
Test player of the summer: Tricky one. I nearly went for Jos Buttler, who showed incredible resilience under pressure. His batting was consistent and excellent. He lost a mark or two for his keeping, though. Chris Woakes was as impressive as ever in English conditions. But it’s Stuart Broad for me.
He’s a proper character. Yes his reaction to being dropped for the first Test may have been seen as a tantrum by some, but 10 wickets in the next two Tests against West Indies, and 12 in three in a rain-truncated series against Pakistan was the perfect response. He also recaptured his mojo with the bat.
A return to Australia looks likely now, and presumably the home fans will not give him such a hard time on this occasion, instead recognising him as a fighter and proper character, warts and all.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: It was really good to see Sam Billings do himself justice after limited opportunities in recent years. Chris Woakes was as reliable as ever. Jonny Bairstow didn’t let his Test travails get him down. But I’ll pick Adil Rashid.
He was such fun to watch. OK he didn’t always justify the faith shown in him by Eoin Morgan, bowling at the death against the Australians and so on. They took to him in the ODIs actually, but he was superb against them in the T20s. He also bowled pretty well against Pakistan and Ireland.
It’s wonderful seeing him tossing it up teasingly, ripping that googly; and his quirky batting… the inside-out cover-drive and so on. He offers something different with bat and ball (although I don’t see him being an Ashes saviour, I should add).
County player of the summer: Craig Overton – keeps on improving. Bowled long, impressive spells in Australia last winter with the Lions, and now this summer 66 wickets at 13, and 248 runs. He has one foot on the plane if the tour takes place in 13 months.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Ben Duckett (Notts), Tom Lammonby (Somst), Dawid Malan (Yorks), Jake Libby (Worcs), Adam Wheater (Essex), Brett D’Oliveira (Worcs), Darren Stevens (Kent), Craig Overton (Somst), Tim Murtagh (Middx), Ollie Robinson (Sussex)
T20 Blast team of the summer: Alex Lees (Durham), Ben Duckett (Notts), Joe Root (Yorks), Laurie Evans (Surrey), Dan Christian (Notts), Alex Davies (Lancs), Will Jacks (Surrey), George Garton (Sussex), Jake Ball (Notts), Matt Parkinson (Lancs), Reece Topley (Surrey) (it was hard not picking an attack entirely of spinners and left-arm quicks).
Women's player of the summer: Sophie Ecclestone. I enjoy watching her bowl. Flight and dip from the wannabe pilot. At 21 she can reign for years.
Young player of the summer: Northern Irish offie Jack Carson looks a thrilling discovery by Sussex. I watched him bowl well against Surrey at The Oval.
Moment of the summer: The partnership between Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes in the first Test against Pakistan at Emirates Old Trafford was great cricket, reminiscent of tense days of yore, like Lord’s 2000 for instance.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: The weather that ruined the remainder of the Test series against Pakistan after that thrilling first Test.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: Enjoyable after an interminable wait.
Stuart Broad had an excellent summer
JAMES COYNE
Test player of the summer: Stuart Broad
Broad dealt with his omission from the first Test of the delayed summer in a very post-Twitter way – by appearing on the Sky couch to vent his frustration. Do you think Steven Finn would have been allowed to do that by Andy Flower halfway through the 2010-11 Ashes? For a start Sky Sports probably wouldn’t have plastered it all over social media back then.
Not everyone will have liked his individualism: “I felt like it was my shirt.” But it was hard not to agree that he still warranted his place in English conditions, and that playing Jofra Archer and Mark Wood in the same Test XI might be a tactic best held back for the Ashes tour.
England lost the first Test against West Indies, but with Broad restored to the side they would have won the next five were it not for rain. If there is anything in a pitch, Broad will find it. But he will have to accept that one day he will be dropped for good.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: Adil Rashid
It’s probably unfair to expect a leg-spinner with a shoulder issue to play in all formats for England – though the unusually long gap to the India tour this winter must be tempting for Rashid and the selectors.
It’s possibly best to just enjoy what he brings to England in the white-ball formats, especially T20, where he had Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell hopping about like cats on a hot tin roof. He was Eoin Morgan’s trump card in that mini-series at the Ageas Bowl.
County player of the summer: Ben Duckett
For much of the season his team-mate Joe Clarke appeared to be in better touch, but it’s a measure of Duckett’s improvement that he leaves a more lasting impression from the curtailed season. In red-ball cricket he has worked on leaving the ball much better outside off stump, which helped him to two big centuries, though not the long-awaited first-class win for Nottinghamshire.
That deliverance instead came in the Blast, where Duckett guided them over the line against Surrey. He might have to wait for injuries and Eoin Morgan’s retirement to get back in the England white-ball reckoning, but he should probably be higher up in the Test pecking order than he is.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Jake Libby (Worcestershire), Tom Lammonby (Somerset), Jordan Cox (Kent), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Adam Wheater (Essex), Darren Stevens (Kent), Lewis Gregory (Somerset), Craig Overton (Somerset), Simon Harmer (Essex), Amar Virdi (Surrey)
Blast team of the summer: Alex Davies (Lancashire), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Ian Cockbain (Gloucestershire), Joe Clarke (Nottinghamshire), Will Jacks (Surrey), Laurie Evans (Surrey), Ryan Higgins (Gloucestershire), Dan Christian (Nottinghamshire), Tom Smith (Gloucestershire), Jake Ball (Nottinghamshire), Reece Topley (Surrey)
Women's player of the summer: Sarah Glenn (Central Sparks & England)
Glenn looks she has what it takes to be one of England’s big-match players. Her leggies and developing wrong’un add a different dimension to England’s bowling, which looks otherwise a little long in the tooth.
And she showed some poise with the bat too, against an admittedly sloppy West Indies side. The Big Bash in Australia – the spiritual home of leg-spin – should be the perfect place to take her game on right now.
Young player of the summer: Tom Lammonby (Somerset)
Just when we thought sensible, organised English left-handed openers were a dying species, along comes 20-year-old Tom Lammonby.
Three centuries in 11 first-class innings will make people sit up, but to take on Simon Harmer and the rest of the Essex attack in the crunch final for a century is no mean feat. He’s another one from Devon, by the way. They really are doing something right down there.
Moment of the summer: Quite personal, this, but something which thousands of others out there will understand too. Sitting with a beer after a game in early-evening mid-September sunshine, denied the usual shower so a little sweatier than usual, but getting to know new people in the game, catching up with old friends, and generally talking about the game (sometimes lucidly, sometimes not).
Club cricket is the beginning and end of this game, and it had a fight on its hands before the Covid-19 pandemic. So let us hope that in a funny sort of way, the work-from-home revolution ends up working in the favour of our clubs – as those of us stuck in the house all day yearn in the evenings and weekends to help out at the “green lungs of the community” which Tanya Aldred has written about so beautifully for us.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: West Indies Women
Aside, obviously, the lack of crowds, the onerous restrictions placed on participants and the worrying financial clouds on the horizon... It’s really not healthy that England were so much better than West Indies in those five women’s T20Is at the fag-end of the summer.
Yes, they are operating on a fraction of the budget of England, Australia and India. Yes, the Covid-19 pandemic caused probably even more disruption when you’re trying to bring together players from different countries. Yes, they are the team always trotted out to satisfy a TV deal. Yes, they had only a few days’ notice before flying over from all corners of the Caribbean. Yes, it was cold at Derby. So no one could reasonably expect West Indies to win the series.
We probably should expect them, though, to move their feet at the crease, look for twos in the field, or show some ingenuity when it comes to setting a field in a run-chase. Those of us who love West Indies cricket want a bit better than they showed us.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: Great job getting it on
VISIT THE COUNTY HUB
SAM MORSHEAD
Test player of the summer: Jos Buttler
It would be all too easy to give this gong to Stuart Broad, who talked the talk and walked the walk across the Test summer, but Buttler's consistency and proficiency with the bat was what impressed me most.
By his own admission, he was fighting for his place at the start of the season. By the end of it, he had proven himself to be capable of serious, decisive innings under huge pressure.
Also in the mix here was Mohammad Rizwan, who was as accomplished against the dip and swing past the bat of any overseas keeper in the UK for some time, and who played a couple of handy innings too.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: Adil Rashid
An absolute master with the ball, his peformances in the T20s and ODIs against Ireland were mesmeric. Certainly that shoulder problem seems firmly in the past. The conversations about a recall in red-ball cricket for trips to South Asia are certainly justified.
County player of the summer: Craig Overton
Runs and wickets, match-defining contributions in both disciplines, and a Lord's final appearance to boot.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Jake Libby (Worcestershire), Tom Lammonby (Somerset), Charlie Thurston (Northamptonshire), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Ben Cox (Worcestershire), Darren Stevens (Kent), Lewis Gregory (Somerset), Craig Overton (Somerset), Simon Harmer (Essex), Tim Murtagh (Middlesex)
Blast team of the summer: Alex Davies (Lancashire), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Alex Lees (Durham), Ian Cockbain (Gloucestershire), Will Jacks (Surrey), Ryan Higgins (Gloucestershire), Dan Christian (Nottinghamshire), Tom Smith (Gloucestershire), Dan Moriarty (Surrey), Jake Ball (Nottinghamshire), Reece Topley (Surrey)
Women's player of the summer: Sarah Glenn (Central Sparks & England)
An England legspinner making waves. Glenn's performances helped bag her a Big Bash contract.
Young player of the summer: Tom Lammonby (Somerset)
Three centuries in 11 first-class innings at the tender age of 20.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: Hard work has just begun
Nottinghamshire celebrate T20 Blast success
NICK HOWSON
Test player of the summer: Jos Buttler - The walls appeared to be closing in on Buttler at the start of the summer, but any questions over his place in the England Test team were swiftly answered. He produced his finest red-ball knock in helping secure a fine win over West Indies before just a second century in the format against Pakistan in Southampton. Ed Smith can consider himself vindicated.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: Sam Billings - Five years into his international career and yet this felt like the breakthrough summer for the Kent 'keeper. Averaged over 50 across his 10 white-ball outings and his 118 in the first ODI against Australia might have been in a losing cause but the knock proved there is plenty of character underneath the obvious talent.
County player of the summer: Craig Overton - Deserves another go with England after returning to the county scene with renewed vigour. Regular onlookers have hailed an added yard of pace which will pique the interest of the selectors with the Ashes on the horizon. Backed that up with some notable innings with the bat in the Bob Willis Trophy. Superb year.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Ben Slater (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Colin Ackermann (Leicestershire), Brett D'Oliveira (Worcestershire), Alex Davies (Lancashire), Craig Overton (Somerset), Darren Stevens (Kent), Jamie Porter (Essex), Simon Harmer (Essex), Tim Murtagh (Middlesex)
Blast team of the summer: Daniel Bell-Drummond (Kent), Alex Davies (Lancashire), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Ian Cockbain (Gloucestershire), Joe Clarke (Nottinghamshire), Will Jacks (Surrey), Sam Hain (Warwickshire), Ryan Higgins (Gloucestershire), Tom Smith (Gloucestershire) Dan Moriarty (Surrey), Jake Ball (Nottinghamshire)
Women's player of the summer: Georgia Adams - Probably the obvious choice given she finished at the leading run-scorer in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, but in this summer of discovery Adams is surely the outstanding find. Carrying her bat to score 154 against Western Storm might have been the individual performance of the year.
Young player of the summer: Daniel Moriarty - Another player off the prolific Surrey conveyor belt. The left-arm spinner was brilliantly frugal in the Blast and potent in the Bob Willis Trophy, where he claimed three five-fors in four innings.
Moment of the summer: Jonny Bairstow is still wondering how Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled him in the third T20. The swinging yorker in the first over which clattered into off-stump was the delivery of the year.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: Cricket, like many sports, got used to life without crowds. The absence of supporters cannot be allowed to be normalised in 2021 and beyond, even if a date for their return remains unknown. Fake cheers must be removed by broadcasters to ensure there is a constant reminder.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: There is a storm coming
NICK FRIEND
Men's Test player of the summer: Stuart Broad.
It has rarely been a good idea to leave Broad out of an England team, which is why they hadn’t done it in a home Test since 2012. After missing the first Test, he returned with a point to prove. He piled the pressure on himself in a brutally candid interview, before emerging as England’s player of the summer, with a 500th Test wicket to boot.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: Jonny Bairstow was rarely at his best over the course of the summer, but still continued to churn out white-ball runs for England. A brilliant batsman. A shoutout, too, for Chris Woakes, whose three spells against Australia are among the most skilful I can recall from an England seamer in ODI cricket.
County player of the summer: Darren Stevens... quite simply, for continuing to do what he does.
The lockdown layoff was challenging for everyone, but to emerge from it as a 44-year-old seamer with 29 wickets at 15.88 apiece is a remarkable effort. He booked himself in for another new contract in the process.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Jake Libby (Worcestershire), Tom Lammonby (Somerset), Ben Slater (Nottinghamshire/Leicestershire), Will Rhodes (Warwickshire), Steven Davies (Somerset), Darren Stevens (Kent), Craig Overton (Somerset), Simon Harmer (Essex), Jamie Porter (Essex), Olly Hannon-Dalby (Warwickshire)
T20 Blast team of the summer: Daniel Bell-Drummond (Kent), Stevie Eskinazi (Middlesex), Ben Duckett (Notts), Will Jacks (Surrey), Ian Cockbain (Gloucestershire), Alex Davies (Lancashire), Dan Christian (Notts), Ryan Higgins (Gloucestershire), Tom Smith (Gloucestershire), Dan Moriarty (Surrey), Jake Ball (Notts)
Women's player of the summer: Georgia Adams.
The Southern Vipers captain ended the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy with 500 runs at an average of 83.33, leading her side to glory at Edgbaston. More significantly, in a competition that gave opportunities to a band of young players, Adams flew the flag for established domestic players, providing a strong push for a belated international call-up.
Young player of the summer: Sarah Glenn had never played international cricket this time last year.
Now, she is England’s player of the year, a vital part of Lisa Keightley’s side, one of the foremost leg-spinners in the women’s game and the holder of a Women’s Big Bash contract with Perth Scorchers. Shoutouts, too, for Somerset’s Tom Lammonby and Middlesex leg-spinning allrounder Luke Hollman, both of whom have huge futures in the game.
Moment of the summer: Stepping out to play when amateur cricket was given the go-ahead was a rare thrill – everything felt like a bonus after the travails of the months up to that point. Professionally, sitting at T20 Blast Finals Day in the Edgbaston press box was when it all hit home – not only that 168 domestic games had taken place between August 1 and October 4, but also that I had the huge fortune of being one of few to watch any live cricket at all. It was a privilege.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: The empty grounds. Although we had to get used to them, it never became any less eerie.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: A miracle that it happened.
OWEN RILEY
Test player of the summer: Stuart Broad
29 wickets at 13.41 and 124 runs at 41.33 are a set of numbers you won’t find me arguing with.
Broad’s Sky Sports interview after being left out of the XI for the Test of the summer has been shared widely. It was an honest and refreshing response from a proud sportsman, but most importantly it was a backed it up with some stunning performances on the grass.
Six scalps on his return were followed up with a third 10-wicket haul in Tests - one which saw him pass the 500 barrier. A remarkable achievement. He even appears to be enjoying his batting again which is always a highly-entertaining spectacle.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: Sam Billings
For the last few years Billings has felt like a man forever on the fringes. This summer afforded him a longer run in the side and he took his chance by stringing together a fine run of white-ball performances. The wicketkeeper-batsman finished the ODI summer with 315 runs coming at an average of 78.75. His maiden international century may have come in a losing cause but it confirmed his ability at the top level.
Elsewhere David Malan has continued to catch the eye in international cricket’s shortest format. 213 runs at 42.60, including fifties against both Australia and Pakistan, was a run that sees him top the T20I ICC batting rankings.
County player of the summer: Simon Harmer
A massively reduced schedule and Harmer still ends up with 48 wickets in his back pocket. 38 of those came in a victorious Bob Willis Trophy campaign, eight more than his nearest competitor - Somerset’s Craig Overton. A skilled operator.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Jake Libby (Worcestershire), Tom Lammonby (Somerset), Ben Slater (Notts, Leicestershire), Will Rhodes (Warwickshire), Adam Wheater (Essex), Darren Stevens (Kent), Craig Overton (Somerset), Simon Harmer (Essex), Jamie Porter (Essex), Josh Davey (Somerset)
Blast team of the summer: Daniel Bell-Drummond (Kent), Luke Wright (Sussex), Ben Duckett (Notts), Will Jacks (Surrey), Iain Cockbain (Gloucestershire), Alex Davies (Lancashire), Ryan Higgins (Gloucestershire), George Garton (Sussex), Matt Parkinson (Lancashire), Daniel Moriarty (Surrey), Jake Ball (Notts)
Women's player of the summer: Georgia Adams
Adams ran the show as Southern Vipers stormed to the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy title. The skipper scored 500 runs at 83.33 in the tournament, including an unbeaten 154 vs Western Storm and a match-winning 80 in the final against Northern Diamonds.
Her full set of scores is an impressive read: 37, 55, 44, 89, 154*, 41, 80. For good measure, the 27-year-old took seven wickets at 22 as well…
Young player of the summer: Tom Lammonby
Nobody struck more centuries in the Bob Willis Trophy than 21-year-old Lammonby. The Exeter-born opener struck 343 runs on route to the final, hitting unbeaten tons against Gloucestershire and Worcestershire in the process. A third-ball duck in the first innings at Lord’s was followed by century No.3 in the second against a fine Essex attack. Three hundreds in your first six first-class matches, a fine return.
*Will Jacks unlucky to miss out on an award somewhere in here. He’s had a brilliant summer.
Moment of the summer: Well, it’s not often you see a seamer take 600 wickets in Test cricket is it? A sublime effort from a sportsman of mountainous class. Kraigg Brathwaite becoming Mr Broad’s, as well as Anderson’s, 500th Test victim also had a pleasing symmetry to it.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: It was difficult to know what to expect with players stuck in bio-secure bubbles and touring sides coming in with little cricket under their belts, but we have seen some top-drawer battles and witnessed some major milestones. It’s just a shame, despite the obvious and essential reasons, that the theatre was without its crowds.
As a silver lining, it has led to widespread streaming from counties which are rapidly progressing from single, fixed-frame set-ups to multi-angle broadcasts with full commentary. Some fine work behind the scenes there.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: Surreal. Grateful for any cricket.
Sophie Ecclestone in action for England
OLIVER THORPE
Men's Test player of the summer: Stuart Broad
Having been left out of the summer’s first Test was a huge blow for him. But in typical Broad fashion he proved his doubters wrong and put in a number of fine performances in front of his dad who was match referee throughout. He also passed 500 Test wickets which was a special moment – even if there was no crowd!
Men's white-ball player of the summer: Sam Billings
It was great to see Billings get in the runs this summer. After having rotten luck with injury, it was nice to see him back striking the ball with so much power. A joy to watch in full flow.
County player of the summer: Simon Harmer
Mr Consistent; even in this muddled summer the South African found rhythm, bamboozling batsmen and finishing top of the wickets chart again. Marvellous effort.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Alastair Cook (Essex), Tom Lammonby (Somerset), Charlie Thurston (Northamptonshire), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Jonathan Tattersall (Yorkshire), Steven Davies (Somerset), Simon Harmer (Essex), Craig Overton (Somerset), Darren Stevens (Kent), Jamie Porter (Essex), Tim Murtagh (Middlesex)
T20 Blast team of the summer: Bell-Drummond (Kent), Luke Wright (Sussex), Alex Lees (Durham), Stevie Eskanasi (Middlesex), Iain Cockbain (Gloucestershire), Alex Davies (Lancashire), Ryan Higgins (Gloucestershire), George Garton (Sussex), Tom Smith (Gloucestershire), Daniel Moriarty (Surrey), Jake Ball (Nottinghamshire)
Women's player of the summer: Sarah Glenn
Glenn took seven wickets in the five matches against West Indies, proving that she can be a consistent performer and complement Sophie Ecclestone nicely. Still very young, there will be even more top performances from her I’m sure.
Young player of the summer: Jack Carson – This young man has sacrificed so much to break into the first-team at Hove. To have put in some of the shifts he has done in this, the strangest of summers, is remarkable. I have no doubt that there are bigger and better things to come for him.
Moment of the summer: For me it has to be Ireland beating England in Southampton. Okay, I admit there’s a bit of bias, but the victory was special for a couple of reasons.
The first reason is the fact that Ireland were already 2-0 down in the series; heads could have easily dropped and it could have been a case of going through the motions before catching the next possible flight home. However, Andrew Balbirnie and Paul Stirling dug deep and showed true grit to get their team over the line.
The second reason is the fact that Ireland picked up their first 10 Cricket World Cup Super League points. "So what?" I hear you ask. For the smaller nations like Afghanistan, Netherlands and even Ireland, each point is valuable and those 10 points could make a huge difference come the end of the competition.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: It has to be the fact that there were no fans. Even if some of the international summer was interrupted by rain or bad light, there would still have been one massive party. Nothing would have stopped the Barmy Army and the thousands of other England fans cheering for Joe Root and his men.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: Hopefully never to be repeated.
T20 BLAST TEAM OF THE SEASON
THOMAS BLOW
Men's Test player of the summer: Chris Woakes
Can we finally accept that Woakes is one of the best Test cricketers in English conditions? This summer he took 17 wickets at just 20.47. It is the third consecutive summer he’s taken at least 12 wickets at an average of 23.87 or below. And he was excellent with the bat, scoring 84 not out against Pakistan to win what turned out to be the deciding match.
But it’s also the way he plays. He bowls with such grace and ease, repeatedly hitting the right areas, getting the ball to nip back and generating good bounce. And his batting is elegant and traditional. For viewers, he’s the delicious pudding after enduring the tough starter of Dominic Sibley and Rory Burns. Joe Root is the Michelin star main course, obviously.
At 31, now is the time for Woakes to reign supreme in England for years to come. Overseas, however, is a different question.
Men's white-ball player of the summer: David Willey
It’s not been a great white-ball summer for England. Eoin Morgan has clearly suffered from not being able to pick who he wants (Ben Stokes, for example), but there have still been some nice performances. One such was David Willey’s revival during the Ireland series.
After being left out of the World Cup squad in such brutal fashion, many would have expected him never to play for England again. Yet he was brilliant, taking eight wickets at an average of 18.50. Sadly, that was not enough for him to retain his place for the rest of the summer. His future looks in doubt again.
County player of the summer: Jake Libby
Everyone loves an underdog. This time last year, Libby’s career was heading in the wrong direction. He managed just 77 first-class runs in 2019 at Nottinghamshire, averaging a mere 18.90.
But since moving to Worcestershire this summer, he’s been in sensational form. He’s smashed 498 runs at 55.33 in the Bob Willis Trophy and 318 runs at a rate of 137.07 in the Blast. Still only 27, there’s time for him to play for England yet.
Bob Willis Trophy team of the summer: Tom Lammonby (Somerset), Jake Libby (Worcs), Alex Davies (Lancs), Tom Abell (Somerset), Ben Duckett (Notts), Adam Wheater (Essex), Jordan Thompson (Yorks), Craig Overton (Somerset), Simon Harmer (Essex), Josh Davey (Somerset), Sam Cook (Essex)
T20 Blast team of the summer: Zak Crawley (Kent), Daniel Bell-Drummond (Kent), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Ian Cockbain (Glos), Steve Eskinazi (Middlesex), Joe Clarke (Notts), Luke Wright (Sussex), Tom Smith (Glos), Daniel Moriarty (Surrey), Timm van der Gugten (Glam), Jake Ball (Notts)
Women's player of the summer: Georgia Adams
Adams has been the star of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy. She was the highest run-scorer in the tournament with 420 heading into the final and has also picked up six handy wickets.
But more importantly, she’s captained Southern Vipers to six wins out of six, guiding them to the showpiece final at Edgbaston. With the 50-over World Cup not too far away, she may just be part of England’s title defence.
Young player of the summer: Tom Lammonby
Somerset are a club renowned for bringing through talented youngsters, although they don’t make it easy – especially if you’re a batter. Because they never seem to have an established opener, the chosen ones usually get chucked in at the deep end.
Tom Banton, Eddie Byrom and Ben Green all made their first-class debuts opening the batting, while Tom Abell was often found opening during his formative years.
Lammonby has followed that trend this summer – and he’s been brilliant. Although he made a duck in the Bob Willis Trophy final, his centuries against Gloucestershire and Worcestershire were crucial to them reaching Lord’s. He’s now established himself in one of the best teams in the country and shows why Somerset fans don’t need to worry about players such as Jamie Overton and Dom Bess leaving the club.
Moment of the summer: Jos Buttler’s century at Hampshire
I recently wrote about this, so I will summarise to avoid self-plagiarism. Buttler’s century against Pakistan, following a barrage of unfair criticism about his form, was the moment he cemented his place in England’s Test side. His and Ed Smith’s perseverance has paid off and the future now looks very bright. A potential future captain in all three-formats? Don’t bet against it.
Biggest disappointment of the summer: Covid-19
The fact we’ve had a cricket season this summer is a fantastic achievement from all concerned and I don’t even want to think about the negatives. It’s hard to look past the obvious.
Sum up the summer of 2020 in five words: Missing beers at the cricket
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