A stunning display against the Northern Knights on Sunday has propelled Canterbury Wizards all-rounder Rob Nicol to the top of the Mitre10 MVP table for the HRV Cup after four rounds of competition.
Nicol took 5/22 in his four overs at QEII, adding to a quick fire 52 against the Auckland Aces in the first round of the HRV Cup and some tight bowling in the other two matches. He said he is thrilled to be at the top of the HRV Cup Mitre10 MVP table.
“I’m really pleased with my performance so far in the HRV Cup and I'm focused on doing my best and continuing my form for the Canterbury Wizards,” he said. “I know I’ve got some stiff competition chasing me but I will continue to focus on performing my role for the Wizards.”
Although Nicol is leading the pack, a number of BLACKCAPS are hot on his heels. Tim Southee, Jacob Oram, Daryl Tuffey and Ross Taylor are showing their worth in the domestic competition sitting at second, fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.
The Central Stags currently sit at the top of the HRV Cup points table with three wins out of four. The Otago Volts, Auckland Aces and Northern Knights have two wins apiece.
Jacob Oram, who is fourth overall, took 5/14 in the second round of the HRV Cup against the Otago Volts, the best Twenty20 bowling figures ever by a New Zealander. While teammate Ross Taylor scored a quick 53 off 32 against the Northern Knights in the third round, and 40 off 19 against the Volts in the second to secure the number six ranking on the overall HRV Cup Mitre10 MVP table.
The Northern Knights took Canterbury by storm with a one wicket victory at the weekend, thanks largely to BLACKCAP Tim Southee, who rescued the Knights innings hitting 32 off 16 balls and taking 2 wickets for 32.
“It’s pleasing to be up the top of the HRV Cup Mitre10 MVP,” he said. “As a whole the Knights have been working really hard to do well during the HRV Cup and it’s great to be involved in this competition.”
As in the men’s competitions, international stars dominate the top 10 places on the overall women’s MVP table, with White Ferns Sophie Devine and Nicola Browne retaining the top two positions.
Senior member of the Northern Spirit and White Fern Kate Pulford has made the biggest move up the MVP table from 18th to fourth, with two outstanding batting performances in the one day competition. She scored 130 off 124 balls against the Canterbury Magicians in the fifth round of the competition, then went on to make 97 off 98 balls against the Wellington Blaze in the seventh round. She has also taken 3/28 during the one day competition and 3/25 in the twenty20 competition.
Former White Fern and current Hearts bowler Natalee Scripps moved from 17th to eighth after taking 150 wickets in domestic cricket, while Magicians captain Amy Satterthwaite moves from 16th to seventh, even though the Magicians are currently last on the one day table and fifth on the Twenty20 table.
