How do your own predictions differ from Nick Hoult’s? Let us know in the comments
Men’s breakout star: Rehan Ahmed
Eight Tests in the sub-continent in 2024 (five in India, three in Pakistan) could really play into Rehan’s hands and enable him to usurp Jack Leach as England’s No 1 spinner. It is a lot to ask for a 20-year-old leggie but the old adage that it takes years for a spinner to learn his craft does not apply now. Just look at the ages of the three spinners England have picked for India. Ahmed is 20, Tom Hartley 24 and Shoaib Bashir only 20.
Rehan has all the skills but just needs a little more consistency with his leg break. He can bat too. He needs to get a bit fitter for Test cricket because long days in sapping conditions will be new for him but you can just sense when a young player has something that sets him apart and Ahmed is a special talent.
Men’s player of the year: Joe Root
England play 17 Tests in 2024 and if Root can keep his rhythm and tempo for Test match batting, it could be a huge year for him. His ODI career appears over, England’s regeneration after the World Cup should allow him just to concentrate on Test cricket for the three years of his central contract.
He needs just over 1,000 runs to become England’s leading Test run scorer, going past Sir Alastair Cook, and could end the year with more than 13,000 runs in total given that England play so much cricket. For England to have any chance in India, Root needs to have a good series. For all the Bazball fireworks, England need Root controlling games in the middle order.
Women’s breakout star: Mahika Gaur
She only turns 18 in March, but Gaur looks set for a big year with England. At six feet tall, a left arm swing bowler is a rare commodity in women’s cricket and will need careful handling to avoid injury or burnout but working with head coach Jon Lewis should help. England play Sri Lanka and New Zealand at home this summer offering a good opportunity to give more experience to the next generation.
Women’s player of the year: Nat Sciver-Brunt
The world’s best allrounder just keeps improving and at 31 is in her peak years. The English summer is relatively low key but builds nicely into the World T20 in Bangladesh where conditions will be difficult for England but Sciver-Brunt has the experience from the WPL and her years in international cricket to give her team a real chance.
England have been dominated by Australia for most of her career but there could be a changing of the guard in women’s cricket and Sciver-Brunt could propel England to the top.
What I am most looking forward to: India Tests
Test series in India are special and England will play their adventurous, attacking style making the five-match series in the new year potentially a great contest. Much will depend on how England adapt to conditions and cope with the pitches. India will be under pressure after failing to win the World Cup so expect some turning tracks but the more they make it a lottery, the more it brings the Bazballers into the contest.
Stokes’s imaginative captaincy will make India think and if England start well, it could be the home side that blinks first.
T20 World Cup winner: West Indies
It would be a great story to see the West Indies win their own tournament in June. They have the six-hitting power and despite fading in Tests and 50 overs, they remain a fine T20 team.
Arguably, the Caribbean is the home of T20, the warm nights and party atmosphere at the grounds proves cricket is still a major draw in the West Indies. It could do wonders for the game if they can win the World Cup on their own pitches.
England, sadly, appear to be making the same mistakes of the 2023 World Cup and pinning their hopes on past glories. Can they snap out of the malaise in time?
County Championship winner: Surrey
Look no further than the Oval. Dan Lawrence’s signing bolsters an already very strong team. Keep an eye on promoted Durham too. Well run on and off the field, they have embraced Bazball more than any other side and have most bases covered. Nathan Lyon at Lancashire will be fascinating to watch too.
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