After another month filled with quality that has seen Essex continue to compete on multiple fronts, the four-player shortlist for the May wefinanceanycar.com Player of the Month award of the season has been revealed.
The quartet includes the Eagles’ two new additions for 2024, alongside a middle-order maestro and one of the premier first-change seamers on the county cricket circuit.
By voting in the wefinanceanycar.com Player of the Month award, you will be in with a chance of winning a signed shirt from the player who receives the eventual crown for May.
The Contenders
Jordan Cox
Cox continued his fine start to life at Essex since switching from Kent in the off-season to hit exactly 400 County Championship runs during May, elevating him to third in the overall scoring charts.
After hitting 112 against Warwickshire, Cox’s highlight came when he put his old employers to the sword in Canterbury, striking a spectacular double hundred.
He also contributed 78 runs across the first two matches in the Vitality Blast against Gloucestershire and Somerset, scoring at a strike rate of 156.
Matt Critchley
A consistently reliable player for Essex with bat and ball, Critchley backed up a strong April with more all-round showings throughout May.
He was also vital in the nervelessly titanic run chase that secured a crucial win over Warwickshire, scoring an unbeaten 99, but it was his bowling that especially caught the eye.
Critchley returned a haul of 4/24 as the Bears suffered a second-innings skittling at Chelmsford to set up that chase, while he went one better the following week, snaring 5/88 in the first dig against Kent.
Dean Elgar
After Cox, the other half of Essex’s new boys on the block also stretched good April form into May, adding contributions in both red- and white-ball cricket.
The unshakeable former South Africa captain struck 152 Championship runs in May, including two further half-centuries against Warwickshire and Kent.
Having then been included in the Eagles’ squad to kick off the 2024 Blast, Elgar displayed another side to his game, firing a 51-ball 77 against champions Somerset’s vaunted bowling attack in Taunton.
Shane Snater
Justifiably considered by Essex fans to be one of the most underrated seamers on the county circuit, Snater continued to show his quality throughout May.
The Zimbabwe-born all-rounder started the month with a four-wicket haul away to Somerset, before following it up with 3/58 and 3/15 against Warwickshire and Kent, respectively.
Those returns gave him a total of ten scalps in the month at a miserly average of just 12.80, but not content with that, he also hit an unbeaten 83 in Canterbury to contribute to another big win.
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Full terms and conditions for the competition can be found here.
The Eagles Have Landed: The 2024 Vitality Blast at The Cloud County Ground
Fresh from a Finals Day appearance last summer, Essex are now back in shortest-format action in Chelmsford for 2024.
Demand remains exceptionally high, and there are now only 15% of tickets remaining across the six remaining home fixtures, with two already sold out.
With the Eagles aiming to go one better in 2024, there is no time to waste to snap up your seats.
Friday 07 June, 7:00pm: Essex v Glamorgan – buy here (LAST FEW TICKETS)
Friday 14 June, 7:00pm: Essex v Sussex Sharks – SOLD OUT
Thursday 20 June, 7:00pm: Essex v Hampshire Hawks – buy here
Friday 05 July, 7:00pm: Essex v Somerset – SOLD OUT
Thursday 11 July, 7:00pm: Essex v Kent Spitfires – buy here
Sunday 14 July, 2:30pm: Essex v Surrey – buy here
