2022/23 Plunket Shield: Second Stanza Notebook
Plunket Shield cricketing is loitering around Blackcaps Test antics and recent performances are aligned with general Blackcaps Test themes. As I explored the Plunket Shield realm the trend of experienced batters scoring most of the runs stretched across all teams and this flowed into bowlers to lead this yarn.
Some of the best PS batters are Test cricketers (Tom Latham, Tom Blundell, Will Young) and won't be lacing up over the next few weeks which could open up opportunities for younger lads. Scoring runs consistently requires a veteran skillset in longform cricket and this is evident in the best team Canterbury (3-0-2) who have Cole McConchie as the only lad with 500+ runs so far (501 runs @ 71.57avg).
Wellington (2-2-1) is second on the ladder and Rachin Ravindra is their leading batter with 423 runs @ 42.3avg. Ravindra is the youngest lad in this crop but has gathered low key experience, while Nick Kelly is Wellington's next best non-Blackcaps batter and he is operating as their Plunket Shield skipper.
Central are third (2-1-1) and their batting mahi is led by Tom Bruce who has 390 runs @ 55.71avg, closely followed by Brad Schmulian. Northern are fourth (1-3-1) with Bharat Popli scoring 428 runs @ 47.55avg, while Jeet Raval and Henry Cooper are also jacking up runs.
Otago sits fifth (1-2-2) and Dean Foxcroft is grooving after the Super Smash with 402 runs @ 44.6avg in a batting line up skewing towards younger lads. Auckland are stuck at the bottom of the ladder (1-2-1) and their best batter is George Worker on 246 runs @ 41avg, while Rob O'Donnell isn't far behind.
11 batters have scored 300+ runs with Ravindra and Foxcroft being the only blokes in the younger age bracket. Given that Ravindra has already played Test cricket and Foxcroft is quietly building a 'Best All Format Batter' case this season, these two are key figures to track when pondering Test batting depth. Blackcaps already have Henry Nicholls and Will Young competing for a batting spot, plus I have Glenn Phillips a tier below them. If Blackcaps need a batter for a Test or a series, they will probably opt for hole-plugging veteran but could integrate Ravindra back into the mix over the next year.
There is a similar zone in the bowling ranks. Canterbury's Will O'Rourke is the best young bowler and he has 15w @ 32.13avg. Seven bowlers have taken more than 15 wickets and they are grizzly performers capable of taking wickets in all conditions, crafty geezers as well...
Jacob Duffy (Otago): 27w @ 23.22avg
Matt Henry (Canterbury): 23w @ 11.69avg
Doug Bracewell (Central): 20w @ 17.55avg
Michael Snedden (Wellington): 17w @ 17.41avg
Iain McPeake (Wellington): 17w @ 25.64avg
Michael Rippon (Otago) 17w @ 31.76avg
Travis Muller (Otago): 17w @ 31.12avg
O'Rourke is the second busiest bowler in Plunket Shield which is impressive for a young lad. Duffy has bowled the most overs with 186.5 and O'Rourke is on 160.1ov ahead of this round. O'Rourke is also part of of an excellent Cantebury team that is sprinkling talented youngsters into a strong group of veterans.
Zak Foulkes continues to impress and he's got 7w @ 16avg in two games this season. Fraser Sheat is a sneaky PS monster and he has 8w @ 29.87avg this season, while averaging 25.54 across 26 First-Class games. Henry Shipley is a bit older and he has entered the Blackcaps ODI/T20I mixer, while sitting on 12w @ 24.91avg in PS this season. Canterbury also gave Rhys Mariu a debut last week and the 21-year-old returned the favour with scores of 68 and 78*.
Muhammad Abbas made his debut as well, playing as an all-rounder for Wellington fresh after impressing at the Under 19 national tournament. Abbas didn't take a wicket but he had a knock of 79 and he joined Luke Georgeson as younger Wellington batters scoring runs in their draw with Otago. Georgeson scored 61 runs at the top of the order and this was his first 50+ score of the summer.
Wellington serves as an example of youngsters struggling for PS runs with Georgeson averaging 17.7 this season. Talented batters Troy Johnson (16.9avg), Tim Robinson (5.25av) and Jakob Bhula (3.25avg) haven't found a PS groove yet. Even if a young batter scores runs early in their PS careers, the biggest development leap comes after grinding through a hefty lean patch.
G-Phillips played his first game of the summer with 108 runs @ 114sr against Wellington. As someone hunting a Test promotion, Glenn registered his first 50+ score in his first appearance while younger brother Dale had his first 50+ score of the season against Wellington in his fifth game.
Despite losing to Canterbury, Northern threw up some funky wrinkles. Brett Hampton took 5w in the first innings and he is settling into consistent PS mahi, taking 9w @ 24.11avg this season. Hampton has been an influential figure in Northern's Super Smash and Ford Trophy teams, now he's getting plenty of PS reps. Scott Johnston also took 8w in his first game of the season for Northern and his third FC game, helping to fill the void left by their leading wicket-taker Neil Wagner (12w @ 29.16avg).
Katene Clarke played his first PS game of the season and hit 58 runs @ 98sr, before a duck against Canterbury. Clarke has played 34 List-A games and 26 T20 games for Northern, along with 11 FC games. Clarke has been a key player in back to back Super Smash championships with his T20 batting strike-rate of 143 and now he has a FC half-century, perhaps even more opportunities in Northern's middle order.
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Peace and love.