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Neil Broom of Otago - Source: Photosport -
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TVNZ's cricket writer Max Bania takes a look at how Plunket Shield players have perfomed throughout the season with his team of the year.
Brad Wilson (Northern Districts). 733 runs at 48.9.
Domestic top orders have tended to be littered with journeyman and Black Caps discards in recent years, which is why it's nice to see fresh talent in the form of the 25-year-old right-hander. Wilson's season highlight came in the form of a career-best 151 in a 274-run opening stand with BJ Watling that saw Northern chase down 385 against Wellington with just one wicket down. Also struck an unbeaten hundred against Auckland in a breakthrough year.
Craig Cumming (Otago). 714 runs at 51.
Though he hasn't enjoyed the same glittering international career, the Otago captain's contribution to his province now rivals that of the great Bert Sutcliffe; a fact that was acknowledged with his naming in the Otago team of the century last month. After a quiet early summer, Cumming burst into life with a pair of centuries that took his side to within a whisker of beating Canterbury in February. Another hundred and two 90s were to follow, leaving the right-hander poised to surpass Sutcliffe as Otago's highest-ever run scorer early next season.
Peter Ingram (Central Districts). 858 runs at 50.5.
Mathew Sinclair may be soldiering on but Ingram is Central's new run machine. The only batsman to hit four centuries over the summer, the right-hander hit 140 in a win over Canterbury, and later smashed 135 in a stalemate against Wellington. At 32, the prospects of an international comeback seem remote but another season of powerful hitting would certainly force the selectors to think twice.
Daniel Flynn (ND). 614 runs at 55.8.
The 25-year-old continues to belie his reputation as a dour international batsman by playing sparkling, aggressive innings at domestic level. His 241 against Otago at Seddon Park was the innings of the summer, coming off just 253 balls. Just as impressive was his 131 against a rampant Central Districts attack in Whangarei. Missed two matches, otherwise would likely have challenged Peter Ingram at the top of the run-scoring charts.
Neil Broom (Otago). 645 runs at 49.6.
It's a shame that the Christchurch-born right-hander was earmarked as a limited overs player at international level because it's in the longer form of the game, where he has time to play himself in and ample gaps in front of the wicket to pierce, where he really excels. Neil and younger brother Darren performed arguably the biggest rescue operation of the year; trailing Northern Districts on the first innings and 33 for 4 in their second dig; Neil struck a patient unbeaten 203 in a 252-run partnership to steer the Volts to safety.
Derek de Boorder (Otago). 667 runs at 66.7.
A breakthrough year for the keeper who will have designs on
a Test cap after catching the selectors' eyes in 2010/11. De
Boorder was at the centre of most of Otago's lower order rearguard
actions, hitting unbeaten tons against Wellington and Northern
Districts, and he remains one of the tidiest glovemen in the
country.
Andrew Ellis (Canterbury). 365 runs at 33.2, 29 wickets at
22.8.
With Luke Woodcock heading back and forth on international duty, the 29-year-old Cantabrian was the standout all-rounder in domestic cricket. Though not possessing express pace, Ellis bowled consistent and demanding lines, routing Central in Rangiora with a haul of 6-54. His highlight with the bat was a patient 118 as he herded Canterbury's tail to 496 all out in Queenstown.
Todd Astle (Canterbury). 37 wickets at 29.1.
The 24-year-old's journey through first class cricket has resembled Mark Richardson's, only in reverse. From being an elegant opener and part-time spinner who woke up one morning and couldn't remember which end of the bat to hold, Astle has reinvented himself as a leg spinner who chips in a few runs down the order. Bowled more deliveries than anyone else this summer; the highlight being a match-winning second innings haul of 6-28 against Northern in November.
Neil Wagner (Otago). 51 wickets at 18.2.
The fearsome left-armer's astonishing feat of five wickets in an over against Wellington was richly-deserved because it drew full attention to a man whose feats of wicket-taking over the past three seasons haven't fully gone appreciated. Closer in style to countryman Dale Steyn than your average Kiwi fast bowler, Wagner's double hat trick in Queenstown was a snapshot of his season; a masterclass of pace, control and unplayable swing. More of the same when he inevitably dons a black cap next year, please.
Andy McKay (Wellington). 30 wickets at 20.
New Zealand cricket is suddenly well-served by left-arm pacemen. One of the quickest bowlers in domestic cricket, McKay was rewarded with two five-wicket bags, including a nine-wicket haul that gave his team a winning position against Canterbury that was squandered by his batsmen. Given his domestic form, it's somewhat perplexing that he was only called up to the World Cup at such a late stage; his performance against Sri Lanka in the semi-final suggested they could've used him earlier.
Chris Martin (Auckland). 31 wickets at 22.7.
Approaching his 37th birthday, the genial old man of New Zealand cricket still hits the crease with the same vigour and gets better at outfoxing batsmen with every season that goes by. Took nine wickets in a losing effort to Wellington last month, and also enjoyed five-wicket bags against Otago and Northern. Scored 31 runs in an unusually-productive season with the bat.
