Cricket in 2016: Big year for MS Dhoni and James Anderson
Wednesday 6 January 2016 11:13, UK
2016 is going to be a bumper year in cricket.
England will complete their tour of South Africa and Australia and New Zealand will renew acquaintances in the Black Caps' back yard before the world's best short-form players strut their stuff in the ICC World T20.
With an Under-19 World Cup on the agenda, not to mention a cracking English summer as Alastair Cook's Test boys and Eoin Morgan's limited-overs charges welcome Sri Lanka and Pakistan, the coming months will be chock full of action.
But who will eyes be on most in 2016? Here are some that will be under the microscope.
MS DHONI
As the darling of Indian cricket, the spotlight is very rarely off wicketkeeper-batsman Dhoni - and it will be very firmly on him when he attempts to lead India to ICC World T20 glory on home soil this spring, a feat he achieved in the 50-over World Cup in 2011, when he scored a swashbuckling 91 not out from 79 balls against Sri Lanka in the final in Mumbai.
India won the inaugural ICC World T20 under Dhoni's tutelage, in South Africa in 2007, but have not tasted glory since with meek showings in the next three tournaments followed by defeat in the final to a Kumar Sangakkara-inspired Sri Lanka last time out. It's not just one T20 trophy that Dhoni will be aiming to lift on his own turf in 2016, though, as he'll also be seeking a third IPL title, albeit a first with new team Pune.
SARAH TAYLOR
2015 was a momentous year for England Women's star Taylor, the wicketkeeper becoming the first female to play men's grade cricket in Australia when figuring for Northern Districts, and then scoring a century in the final of the Women's National Cricket League as South Australia denied New South Wales an 11th successive title.
The one low point for Taylor, though, was England's Ashes loss to Australia - the Sussex player nabbed a pair in the solitary Test and just one fifty across the formats - so she will be hoping to re-stamp her authority on the international game when England Women travel to South Africa in February, a series in which she will win her 100th ODI cap, and then welcome Pakistan in June and July. Further exposure in the men's game must also be on Taylor's to-do list.
YORKSHIRE
No side has won three County Championship titles on the spin since the Yorkshire side of 1968 but if any outfit can match that feat, this clan can.
With head coach Jason Gillespie going nowhere; seasoned campaigners in the bowling department like Ryan Sidebottom and Jack Brooks; a proven batting line-up including Andrew Gale, and, after being given the chop by England, Adam Lyth; and plenty more promising youngsters on the production line, it's is hard to see anyone stopping the Headingley squad in four-day cricket, even if Messrs Root and Bairstow are rarely free from international duty.
Another goal for Yorkshire will be to improve their one-day fortunes - acquiring big-hitting, wicket-taking David Willey from Northamptonshire is a huge step in the right direction.
JAMES ANDERSON
England will play 17 Test matches in 2016 and with Anderson perched on 426 wickets, can he push on to 500 Test scalps before the year is out?
Anderson, set to return from a calf injury in Cape Town on Saturday, will need to average 4.35 wickets a Test to join fellow seamers Glenn McGrath (563 wickets) and Courtney Walsh (519) in the 500 club, which is eminently doable for a man with his skillset, even if seven of England's matches over the next 12 months are in subcontinental conditions in Bangladesh and India.
That said, the fact Anderson took 13 wickets at 15.61 against Pakistan on road-like surfaces in the UAE proved he is a menace everywhere - and he'll be targeting more than four wickets a Test when the ball swings this English summer.
DAN LAWRENCE
Lawrence rose to attention by becoming the third youngest player to plunder a Championship ton when he hit 161 for Essex against Surrey in April at 17 years and 290 days. Now, at the ripe old age of 18, Lawrence should be one of England's key men during the Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh, having nailed down an opening spot following two centuries against Australia over the summer and two fifties during a recent trip to Sri Lanka.
With Hampshire spinner Mason Crane in tow and 17-year-old Surrey all-rounder Sam Curran off the back of a tremendous breakthrough season, England will be targeting a first World Cup triumph since 1998, when Owais Shah captained a side including Rob Key and Graeme Swann and a fella called Chris Gayle was the top run scorer in the tournament.
