A new Wisden

The new Wisden has been released. This isn't awfully exciting news on this side of the world, but it is probably more interesting than the test match at this stage. One interesting feature of the new edition is that every single one of the "five players of the year" is an Englishman. This seems totally outrageous until you consider that the awards are judged on their influence on the previous "English summer" rather than on world cricket. If you recall, England spent the previous summer thrashing a hapless New Zealand side and there was therefore not much competition for places in the top five from players who live outside England.

One of the more unlikely winners of the player of the year award is Ashley Giles. And it is depressing to read the summary of his season to see that he was struggling for form, being smashed around by the New Zealanders and on the verge of being dropped when something happened to completely change his season:

"Still bowling that negative stuff over the wicket?" goaded [Scott] Styris upon his arrival at the crease. Giles stayed over the wicket, yielded nothing and soon had Styris snaffled at silly point in a spell that ensured his survival as a Test cricketer.

With his confidence back, Giles took six wickets in the next match and scored 81 match-winning runs. Gee. I didn't think there was much else I could blame Scott for, but I was wrong.

Wisden's list of the world's top forty cricketers in 2004 also makes for some heart-breaking reading. Two New Zealanders are on the list. Stephen Fleming is one with the comment that while his captaincy skills seemed to have lost their sheen, his batting form was superlative. The other New Zealander is the crocked Jacob Oram.

New Zealand managed to have two of the world's top forty cricketers in 2003 (when it was Fleming and Richardson) and 2004. At this stage only Hamish Marshall looks to have any chance of making the 2005 list.