THE OVAL WORLD FANTASY CRICKET LEAGUE - SEASON 2005 by Marcus Hook

After too long an absence for most people’s liking the Oval World Fantasy Cricket League (OWFCL) is back. For ease of management I have decided to return to the format devised for the 2000 domestic season. Let’s remind you of the key points:

• County cricket’s crème de la crème have been given values, expressed in terms of fictitious earnings amounts, based on how they fared in the championship in 2003 and 2004.
• Your job is to pick a squad of 13 by deploying a maximum wage bill of £20,000 per week.
• Player points will only be earned on the basis of Frizzell County Championship performances. Performances in any other form of competition, including Tests and One-Day internationals, will not count.
• Each player will gain points for batting, bowling and fielding.
• Batting points will be based on 100s and 50s instead of the aggregate number of runs.
• Bowling points will be awarded each time a player takes 5 wickets or more in an innings.
• Selectors do not need to nominate a captain and points will not be awarded on the basis of matches won.
• Selectors are not forced to pick at least two openers and two spinners.
• Plus, for the first time ever, the winning selector will receive a sought after prize!

HOW TO SCORE POINTS
Using our unique scoring system points will be awarded on the following bases:

BATTING

• 3 points for every century scored in the Frizzell County Championship.
• 1 point for each individual championship performance of between 50 and 99

BOWLING

• 7 points every time a bowler captures 5 or more wickets in an innings of a championship match.

FIELDING

• 0.2 points for every catch or stumping made in the Fizzell County Championship.

The above is slightly different in as much bowlers will get 7 points for claiming a five wicket haul this summer, as opposed to 6 points when this competition format was last used. This recognises that ‘fifers’ are actually very few and far between. In 2004 there were 144 matches in the County Championship and there were only 140 five wicket hauls. As if to prove that cricket is a batsman’s game, it saw 260 centuries!

YOUR SQUAD
Each entrant selects a 13-man squad by completing the application form enclosed. The squad must consist of:

• 5 batsmen
• 5 bowlers
• 2 overseas players, and
• 1 wicketkeeper

Players can only be selected from the 225 batsmen, bowlers and keepers listed and valued below plus any of this season’s overseas players (some of whom, unfortunately, were not known at the time of going to press). At the end of the competition, your team’s total score will be calculated on the basis of your 4 best batsmen, the 4 highest points-scoring bowlers plus the two overseas players and your wicketkeeper.

YOUR BUDGET
You have got a weekly budget of £20,000 with which to pay a squad of 13 players. Naturally, overseas cricketers are the most expensive at £2,100 per week. So, as a safeguard, if an overseas player is replaced by another (for instance we already know that, at Worcestershire, Chaminda Vaas will be filling in for Shoaib Akhtar), his replacement will automatically fill the vacancy created in your squad. Every effort has been made to ensure that the list of players published below also takes account of recent player retirements.

WHAT WILL I WIN?
The winner of the OWFCL will receive a 14 x 9½ inch framed print of Surrey’s championship winning side of 1894, taken from an issue of The Graphic, which was a periodical of the time.

AND FINALLY… THE SMALLPRINT
Each entrant is only allowed to submit one entry. Each selector must be a member of the Surrey CCC Supporters’ Club. There is no registration fee, but if you would like to receive regular updates through the post, please enclose 6 first class stamps with your entry. Selectors can choose a name for their team, provided it does not exceed 25 letters and will not be considered offensive. All entries must be received before the first ball of the Frizzell County Championship season is bowled on 13th April 2005. Selections can be amended, if necessary, before 13 April either in writing or by e-mail. All correspondence relating to the competition should be sent to Marcus Hook, Flat 1, 67 Birdhurst Rise, South Croydon, Surrey CR2 7EJ.

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