Vote for your September PCA Player of the Month

Lewis Gregory, Will Jacks, Dan Moriarty and Zak Crawley are the four nominees for the September PCA Player of the Month award.

The second half of the shortened 2020 season has seen the bulk of this year’s Vitality Blast group stage fixtures take place, as well as one round of Bob Willis Trophy games before the final of the one-off first-class competition between Essex and Somerset last week.

The best players across both formats have been identified by the PCA MVP algorithm, with the second and final winner of the award this year set to be chosen via a public vote.

The MVP algorithm was designed by the PCA in conjunction with the players in order 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 within the game such as scoring quickly, claiming top-order wickets and taking catches in the field.

The Rankings therefore give the most accurate reflection of the top performers in both the domestic and international game.

Sunday saw two end of season MVP awards handed out as Craig Overton and Georgia Adams were named the Bob Willis Trophy and Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy MVPs respectively.

Overton is also the only previous winner of a PCA Player of the Month award this season, having claimed the prize in August on the back of his blistering form in the early stages of the Bob Willis Trophy.

However, the accolade will find a new home this month, and to help you choose which PCA member is most deserving of the award, below is a brief rundown of each of the four contenders’ highlights from September:

Gregory has been on song during a packed late-season schedule which has seen the all-rounder appear in nine domestic fixtures in the space of just 24 days.

The Somerset man is this month’s highest MVP points scorer with 153.8 at an average of 17.1 points-per-game across the two formats. He has particularly excelled in the bowling department, claiming 22 domestic wickets this month at an average of 18.8, including innings figures of 6-72 during the Bob Willis Trophy final at Lord’s.

Jacks has been the outstanding performer during this year’s Vitality Blast competition, a key player for Surrey as he has regularly opened both the batting and bowling in the 20-over format.

The all-rounder is the current leader of the Vitality Blast MVP Rankings with 123.5 points to his name at an average of 12.4 points-per-game in the format. 21-year-old Jacks has been a model of consistency in T20s, passing 40 four times this month including three fifties in his last four outings.

Jacks’ Surrey teammate Moriarty has enjoyed something of a breakout campaign in 2020, the youngster having made his professional debut on the first day of the season.

The off-spinner has consistently taken wickets across both formats throughout September, claiming 24 scalps at an average of 17.6. That haul included match figures of 11-224 against Sussex in the Bob Willis Trophy – a Player of the Match performance which earned Moriarty 49.15 MVP points.

Not content with his outstanding form in an England shirt this summer, Crawley has returned to the domestic stage with a bang this September.

The 22-year-old has scored 387 runs at 43 this month, making centuries in both formats. His unbeaten 108 against Hampshire on 14 September was particularly memorable – it was Crawley’s maiden ton in the format, with the innings lasting just 54 balls.