Van Jaarsveld on the rise

12 May 2008

Martin van Jaarsveld hit 109 not out to help see off Sussex © Getty Images

Martin van Jaarsveld’s fine run of form has carried him to the top of the PCA MVP.

The South African hit his second century in the Friends Provident Trophy to help Kent beat Sussex on Sunday, a day after he led his side to victory over Nottinghamshire in the LV County Championship.

Van Jaarsveld’s unbeaten 109 against Sussex took his tally to 367 runs in just five Friends Provident Trophy innings, and knocked Ravi Bopara off the number one spot he has occupied since the first week of the season.

Essex all-rounder Bopara, who was unable to add to his points total as he was in action against New Zealand for the second successive week, slips to third.

Yasir Arafat, van Jaarsveld’s Kent colleague, climbs to second on the back of a series of solid performances with bat and ball, most notably innings of 67 and 36 against Nottinghamshire. He has also taken 23 wickets in all competitions.

Nicky Boje, whose Northamptonshire side were not in championship action last week, drops to fourth, and Jonathan Trott is a new entry at number five courtesy of centuries in each of Warwickshire’s last two games.

Ryan McLaren and Azhar Mahmood complete a quartet of Kent players in the top 10 - they sit seventh and 10th respectively - while Andrew Flintoff’s figures of 3-21 and 4-21 for Lancashire against Durham see him rise to eighth place.