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It was a short and sharp year of cricket but there was plenty of action out in the middle across the Vitality Blast and Bob Willis Trophy.

Over the course of the season, supporters could vote for their DeVines Player of the Month which was won by Alastair Cook and Simon Harmer for the August and September, respectively.

Following the conclusion of the 2020 season, you can now vote for your DeVines Magic Moments for the ‘Best Catch’ with a 5 brilliant contenders to choose from.

You can vote for your favourite via the Club’s Facebook and Twitter pages with the winner announced on Friday 6 October. The nominees are:

• Adam Wheater v Somerset (Bob Willis Trophy Final)
• Alastair Cook v Somerset (Bob Willis Trophy Final)
• Ben Allison v Sussex Sharks (Vitality Blast)
• Sam Cook v Hampshire (Vitality Blast)
• Simon Harmer v Surrey (Bob Willis Trophy)

Look out for how you can vote for your Player of the Year with the winner announced at our End of Season Awards which will be premiered across our channels in November!

Special thanks to DeVines for their continued support as long-term partners of the Club.

Essex County Cricket Club can today confirm that Rishi Patel is set to leave the Club and join Leicestershire.

The 22-year-old progressed through the Essex Academy and made 7 appearances across all formats for the Club, with his highest score of 35 coming against Yorkshire at The Cloudfm County Ground last year.

Head Coach, Anthony McGrath, said: “It’s been a pleasure working with Rishi and seeing another Academy graduate develop into the First Team squad.”

“However, we have a very talented group of players at the Club and it’s been difficult to guarantee a place in the starting XI with the success we have enjoyed in recent seasons.

“Rishi enjoyed his loan spell at Leicestershire last season and it’s an opportunity for him to play more cricket regularly in the next step of his career.”

Rishi Patel said: “I’d like to thank everyone at Essex County Cricket Club for making my dream come true and become a professional cricketer.

“The last two years have been amazing and I’ve learnt so much. I’d like to thank all the coaches and my teammates who made me feel so welcome from the moment I walked into the dressing room.

“It’s been a difficult decision to make, to walk away from the Club I have been part of since I was 7, but I’m looking forward to the new challenges that will arise.”

The Club would like to thank Rishi for his contribution during his time at Essex and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavours.

Alastair Cook has been named the Cricket Writers’ Club Bob Willis Trophy Player of Year after guiding Essex to victory in the Bob Willis Trophy.

The former England Captain ended the campaign as the leading run scorer in the competition, with 563 runs at an average of 56.30. He scored 2 centuries along the way, with the first coming in the draw with Hampshire at Arundel Castle Cricket Ground, and the second coming in the Final against Somerset at Lord’s.

The 172 he scored at The Home of Cricket helped Essex achieve a first innings lead, which proved to be the decisive factor as Tom Westley lifted the trophy despite the match ending in a draw.

The 35-year-old becomes the second Essex player to win the award in as many years, succeeding Simon Harmer, who also had a memorable red-ball campaign.

Speaking to the Cricket Writers’ Club on his award, Cook said: “It was a great year actually. I was very sceptical to start with. I thought a five-match tournament, six with the Final, I didn’t think it would work. I was totally and utterly wrong, it was a brilliant tournament.

“Every game mattered and because there were no Overseas players, because counties had a ‘free shot’ with no relegation, everyone could win it and Clubs backed their own youngsters. Certainly at Essex, someone like Paul Walter came in and took his chance. In Tom Lammonby, Somerset have unearthed yet another very good left-hander.

“The icing on the cake was to play in a Lord’s Final. They kicked us out at about 9pm and we had a lively bus journey home. I know everyone’s said it, but it’s such a shame that this season there were no crowds, I reckon that Lord’s Final would have been sold-out. It was a great game of cricket. You never get bored (of that feeling) when you’ve contributed to a win and hopefully with Essex we can continue our four-day stuff.”

Essex are set to compete for two red-ball titles next summer following confirmation that the first-class Counties have agreed to a revised structure for the 2021 men’s first-class season.

The chairs of the first-class Counties have agreed via a vote that next summer will welcome the return of the County Championship in a group-stage format. The men’s first-class season is then set to end with a showpiece five-day Lord’s final to win the Bob Willis Trophy.

Tom Westley’s side will seek to defend both titles after the side won the 2019 County Championship and this summer’s Bob Willis Trophy Final at Lord’s.

Today’s announcement follows discussions between the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the first-class Counties to help restart the County Championship, whilst mitigating against the impact of COVID-19 next summer. The agreed revised structure is for the 2021 men’s first-class season only.

The 18 first-class Counties are set to play 14 County Championship matches each next summer across Group and Division Stages.
Each first-class County has initially been placed into one of three seeded groups of six and will be scheduled to play five home, and five away, matches during the Group Stage.

The top two Counties in each group, at the end of the Group Stage, will progress to Division One, with the other Counties moving into Divisions Two and Three, where they will each play a further four matches.

The winner of Division One will be crowned the 2021 County Championship winners.

The top two teams in Division One will also earn the right to play in the Bob Willis Trophy final at Lord’s.

ECB Chair, Ian Watmore, said: “Since starting in my new role last month one of my key priorities, as a huge supporter of red-ball cricket, has been to collaborate with the first-class Counties so that we could confirm a structure for next summer’s men’s first-class season.

“I am delighted that the counties have been able to reach that agreement less than three weeks after Essex won the Bob Willis Trophy final at Lord’s.

“The success of that competition provides reassurance that this structure can help safeguard against any impact the global pandemic may have on next season while also ensuring the integrity of the County Championship.

“It must be stressed that this structure has been agreed for next season only and during 2021 we will review and consult with the Counties and other stakeholders to decide the appropriate next steps for the men’s domestic structure in 2022 and beyond.”

Seedings for the Group Stage of the 2021 County Championship have been determined based on performances of the first-class Counties during the 2019 County Championship and the 2020 Bob Willis Trophy.

A provision to accommodate derby matches, only where appropriate within the seeding structure, into the groups has also ensured that county members and supporters can look forward to some of county cricket’s oldest rivalries resuming home and away next summer.

2021 County Championship Groups:

Group 1: Essex, Warwickshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Worcestershire, Durham
Group 2: Somerset, Hampshire, Surrey, Gloucestershire, Middlesex, Leicestershire
Group 3: Kent, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Northamptonshire, Glamorgan, Sussex

Playing conditions for the 2021 County Championship and the 2021 Bob Willis Trophy final remain under discussion and will be announced in due course.

Alastair Cook has been named the DeVines Player of the Month for September, after his impressive display in the Bob Willis Trophy Final at Lord’s.

The Essex opener scored a vital 172 in the first innings, which ensured Tom Westley’s side had the all-important first innings lead over Somerset.

His efforts in the Final saw him become the highest-run scorer in the Bob Willis Trophy, with 563 runs at an average of 56.30. His other century in the competition came against Hampshire at Arundel Castle Cricket Ground in late August.

Alison and Clive Purdy of DeVines Chartered Accounts selected Alastair as the Player of the Month, and commented: “Alastair put in an amazing display at The Home of Cricket and completely deserves the Player of the Month Award.

“His runs in both innings were a big part of Essex securing the title and hopefully there is more success to come over the coming years.”

Essex County Cricket Club are pleased to announce that Ben Allison, Will Buttleman and Aron Nijjar have all signed contract extensions with the Club.

Allison has featured heavily for the Second XI over the last few years and made his T20 debut towards the end of the 2020 campaign. The 20-year-old pace bowler has penned a two-year extension that will see him stay with the Club until the end of the 2022 campaign.

After making several First Team appearances last year, 20-year-old Buttleman was rewarded with his first professional contract, and the wicket-keeper has now put pen to paper on an extension lasting until the end of the 2021 season.

Following on from his Finals Day heroics last year, left-arm spinner Nijjar featured in 9 of the 10 Vitality Blast games in 2020. The 26-year-old was one of the Eagles’ standout bowlers, taking 8 wickets and recording new best figures of 3/22. He’s also signed an extension running until the end of the 2021 campaign.

Essex Head Coach, Anthony McGrath, is delighted that the players have committed their future to the Club, and said: “All these lads have talent, and you can never have too many talented players in your side.

“Ben has been in and around the First Team for a few years now and is a real prospect for the future. He’s a confident young man and always wants the ball in his hand, and everybody at the Club is excited about his potential.

“Will has First Team experience and has always impressed behind the stumps. His skill set has come on a lot over the last 12 months and like with Ben, the coaches and I are keen to see how he develops over the coming years.

“Aron is a skilled and trustworthy bowler and was one of the notable players during our Vitality Blast campaign this year. He hasn’t always found game time easy to come by, but he’s always performed well when called upon, and hopefully he can push on and play more games in 2021.”

Essex Cricket are pleased to announce the extension of the relationship with Essex and Southend Sports Trust (EASST).

This local charity for sport makes grants to recreational cricket in Essex and East London and continues to play a fundamental role in the development of young talent and opportunity for participation across the county and East London.

EASST has been a fantastic supporter of youth cricket having contributed their time, effort and financial backing to a number of projects, including:

Building a Cricket Community Hub at Garon Park, Southend.

Support for the development of Women and Girls Cricket across the region.

Funding the delivery of equipment, including over 100 Kwik Cricket sets, into local schools.

Offering financial support through grants, with over £50,000 helping Clubs across Essex.

Support for the development of the Junior Pathway.

Peter Butler, Chairman of EASST, said: “EASST made cricket related grants in our local area of over £107,000 in our last financial year to 30th June.

“We are also very proud to have recently approved our 50th grant under the Small Grants Scheme for Cricket – this means that 50 different local clubs and cricket related organisations have received help towards a range of projects since the scheme began In April 2018.

“We hope to continue providing further grants for years to come in partnership with Essex Cricket in the Community.”

Dan Feist, Head of Cricket Operations at Essex Cricket, said: “EASST is a leading supporter of community sport across Essex and has been a key stakeholder in the development of Essex Cricket’s community programmes.

“They have helped us exercise our three main objectives which run through our plans to develop cricket in Essex. These are to excite more children into playing through equipment into schools, to engage with the community through high-level cricket activation and experiences specifically around Junior and Women and Girls development, and to enhance clubs’ facilities or community activation via the club grant scheme.

“As a county we are all very thankful for the dedication and support that EASST provides the wider community to enjoy sport and specifically cricket.”

Simon Harmer has picked up the PCA’S Overal MVP award for his performances in the Bob Willis Trophy and Vitality Blast.

After Craig Overton (Bob Willis Trophy) and Will Jacks (Vitality Blast) picked up the individual competition awards, Harmy picked up the combined accolade for the second consecutive year.

He has undoubtedly been the outstanding player in domestic cricket during the last two seasons, and that is reflected in his second consecutive Overall MVP victory.

The off-spinner wins the race for £5k at a canter, earning 268.2 MVP points at an average of 16.76 points-per-game over the course of this season. With by far the best points-per-game average of any player to have appeared in at least ten fixtures, Harmer finishes 30 points clear of nearest challenger and fellow NatWest PCA Men’s Player of the Year nominee Craig Overton.

With individual excellence comes team success, and Harmer has had plenty of that in the last two seasons. The 2019 Specsavers County Championship and Vitality Blast champion this year added the one-off Bob Willis Trophy to his trophy cabinet at the end of September.

Harmer was the leading wicket-taker in first-class cricket last year with 83, and followed suit this year claiming 38 tournament scalps at an average of 15.86 on the way to his team’s ultimate success, earning 195.7 BWT MVP points.

He was only denied further MVP recognition by the excellent form of Overton, who edged Harmer out for the format-specific Bob Willis Trophy MVP after one of the closest races in years.

After his Finals Day heroics last year, Harmer has also contributed in the shortest format this time around, his 72.51 Vitality Blast MVP points ranking him amongst the top 50 performers this season.

To underline his dominance across all formats this year, Harmer led the Overall MVP for 43 non-consecutive days throughout the season. That equates to 66% of the season, with none of the three other players who have led the Overall MVP having a figure higher than 14%.

He is therefore a worthy recipient of the £5,000 Overall MVP winner’s cheque, and joins Jacks, Overton and Southern Vipers’ Georgia Adams in claiming a domestic MVP prize this year.

The MVP algorithm was designed by the PCA in conjunction with the players to identify the match-winning performers in any given fixture. On top of traditional batting and bowling averages, bonus points are awarded for key disciplines such as scoring a large percentage of your team’s runs, claiming top-order wickets and taking catches in the field.

The Rankings therefore give the most accurate reflection of the top performers in the game, and Harmer and Jacks have been just that for Essex and Surrey this season.

Simon Harmer and Alastair Cook have been named in the 2020 Greene King Team of the Year, following the conclusion of the Bob Willis Trophy at Lord’s on Sunday.

Harmer has also been named as the Captain of the Greene King Team of the Year, as is joined by the best performing individuals from this condensed season, selected using the PCA’s purpose-built MVP Rankings.

The team of star performers contains two of the shortlisted players for the NatWest PCA Men’s Player of the Year in the form of Harmer and Craig Overton. Meanwhile, two of the hottest prospects in the game in Will Jacks and Tom Lammonby are included – the duo are shortlisted to win the Vitality PCA Young Player of the Year, with both awards announced as part of the NatWest Cricket Awards on Vitality Blast Finals Day.

The Awards will be the first of its kind when it takes place on Saturday. The event will incorporate the 51st NatWest PCA Awards and the annual NatWest Outstanding Service to Cricket Awards (OSCAs) to celebrate all levels of cricket from grassroots to the international game in this most unique of summers.

The team is a mixture of youth and experience with former England Test captain Alastair Cook selected due to his red-ball performances in helping Essex lift the Bob Willis Trophy.

Eight counties are represented and the team was selected ahead of the Vitality Blast quarter-finals. The balanced team consists of the best performing individuals on the county circuit across red and white-ball cricket. Batting, bowling and fielding points were taken into consideration as well as MVP points-per-game and MVP of the Match awards to create the ultimate domestic team of 2020.

2020 Greene King Team of the Year:

Alastair Cook
Jake Libby
Tom Lammonby
Ben Duckett
Will Jacks
Chris Cooke (WK)
Ryan Higgins
Craig Overton
Simon Harmer (C)
Darren Stevens
Josh Davey

Essex County Cricket Club are delighted to announce that Ryan ten Doeschate has signed a one-year contract extension and will stay with the Club until the end of the 2021 season.

The former Club Captain had another impressive season in 2020, averaging 51 in the Vitality Blast and 31.14 in the Bob Willis Trophy, as Essex secured a fourth red-ball title in five years.

The Dutchman joined Essex back in 2003 and has become a hugely popular figure with both his teammates and the Members and fans at The Cloudfm County Ground.

In his four-year spell as Club Captain, ten Doeschate led Essex to three red-ball titles in four seasons, starting with Division Two in 2016. The following year, he and his team defied all the odds to secure a first County Championship in 25 years, and he once again guided the Club to red-ball glory in 2019.

The 40-year-old said: “I’m delighted to extend my time at the Club for another year.

“I feel that I have sustained my ability to contribute to the team this year and my hunger and passion for the game and the Club is at an all-time high.”

Head Coach Anthony McGrath is also pleased to see ten Doeschate extend his time at the Club, and said: “Ryan is a massive player for us, both on the field and within the dressing room.

“He gives everything his all and you can’t buy his attitude and experience, which has helped us get over the line on plenty of occasions, like in the Bob Willis Trophy Final last Sunday.

“He’s also a fantastic leader and sets a great example for everyone in the changing room. For the younger players, being able to turn to him and ask him for advice is unbelievable and that will undoubtedly improve them as cricketers.”