T20 XI

Following on from my Derbyshire Dogged XI, here’s my T20 all stars side as requested by Nick. As allowed under current regulations, there’s two overseas players. I've also based my selection on players I've seen play.


1 Eddie Barlow – he’d have loved the format and been good at it. Would enjoy going in to play his shots and would be my skipper. Would also take stacks of wickets as people took his bowling on at the death - at their peril. Though the team has some strong characters, Bunter would have kept them all pulling in the same direction.

2 Kim Barnett – a very fine batsman who could play all forms of the game. Would have driven them over cover and got us off to a flyer with the skipper.

3 John Morris – tremendous stroke player who loved the big occasion. An ideal number three for some big shots.

4 Chris Adams – agile fielder, fast runner between the wickets and aggressive batsman. Couldn’t ask for more, really.

5 Adrian Kuiper – just shades Chris Wilkins as he was a better bowler. Huge hitter who would be great in Powerplays, a real danger man.

6 Dominic Cork – a major factor in Hampshire’s win last year and could change a match with bat or ball in his prime. Can’t overlook him.

7 Phil de Freitas – another fierce competitior with bat or ball, a big hitter and brilliant fielder. Perfect for the last five overs.

8 Geoff Miller – a spinner who was hard to hit, fine fielder and classy batsman who should have made more runs than he did. A good insurance policy at number eight.

9 Luke Sutton – T20 isn’t all about big hitting and Sutts is one of the best runners between wickets I’ve seen in our colours. Averaged over 40 in his last T20 campaign for us, so pretty effective

10 Mike Hendrick – opening bowlers need to be accurate and there were few better than Hendo. Rarely got hit, so an obvious choice.

11 Les Jackson – a slight bending of the rules here, as I only saw Les bowl once and he’d been retired for five years. Yet he kept Barry Richards, Fred Goldstein, Geoff Boycott and Ted Dexter to two an over in a match against the International Cavaliers in 1968 and they could all play. If you can bowl nine overs and take two for nineteen when you’re 47, you’d handle things in your pomp…

Yeah, that team would do nicely. Eight bowlers, nine batsmen, five all-rounders - good prospects!