The fourth season of the Big Bash League has caught the imagination the cricketing world, and there have been some standout displays from England players past and present.
Of those to have travelled Down Under to appear in this winter’s competition, we have picked out the three best individual performances so far.
Michael Lumb– 80 off 61 balls for Sydney Sixers v Melbourne Stars
No stranger to Big Bash League cricket, Lumb was signed up for a fourth year in a row by the Sixers and he has not disappointed, featuring towards the top of the run-charts.
Despite threatening to make a big score, Lumb had been forced to play second fiddle to his opening partner Nic Maddinson in the early stages of the tournament but he exploded into life against the Stars.
With regular wickets falling at the other end, the powerful left-hander took a while to get settled before storming to a 33-ball fifty.
He mixed his natural aggression with some classical strokeplay but was forced to rein himself in at times, with only one team-mate reaching double figures.
He eventually fell for 80 from 61 balls, striking six fours and three sixes while the rest of the side could muster only four boundaries between them to show how remarkable Lumb’s knock had been in the innings of 150.
However it proved to be in vain as James Faulkner inspired the Stars to a dramatic victory in a Super Over after Kevin Pietersen’s 54 had drawn them level in 20 overs.
Michael Carberry– 77 not out off 37 balls for Perth Scorchers v Brisbane Heat
Having signed for the defending champions, Carberry had been under growing pressure to score runs from supporters of the Western Australia side, who are often unforgiving.
Despite an unbeaten half-century versus Sydney Thunder in a lost cause, Carberry was seemingly in need of a match-turning innings.
That knock came when he arrived at the crease against the Heat with the score 23 for two, chasing 134.
A scintillating innings, including six sixes, propelled him up the list of the highest run-scorers and truly silenced any potential doubters.
He reached his half-century from just 24 balls – a joint record for the Scorchers – and then proceeded to launch Andrew Flintoff for consecutive maximums, before crucially taking his side to victory.
His brutal display of hitting came as no surprise to loyal Hampshire fans, who have seen the opener do it time and again on the south coast.
Michael Carberry celebrates with Perth Scorchers fans after his match-winning knock against Brisbane Heat. https://t.co/MtsNgSFBL2
— Matt Somerford (@somerfjord) January 8, 2015
Ben Stokes– 77 off 37 balls for Melbourne Renegades v Hobart Hurricanes
After signing up to the Big Bash as a late addition, Stokes immediately endeared himself to Melbourne Renegades fans with an explosive performance on debut.
Thrust straight into action against Hobart Hurricanes, Stokes found himself batting in the unfamiliar position of number three and made his way to the crease in just the second over.
However Stokes proceeded to hammer 13 boundaries (eight fours and five sixes) in a clinical display of power-hitting which displayed his full array of shots and he finished a superb knock with a strike-rate well above 200, on a pitch that everybody else struggled to get to grips with.
It was a mark of how well Stokes had played that the next-highest score was Callum Ferguson’s 31, while no other player passed 20 in the match.
By the time he had finished, the Renegades were 106 for three in the 12th over and well on their way to a comfortable victory.
