Life has taken a turn for the better, but the fast bowler has his sight set on greater success

Shashank Kishore22-Nov-2020″It’s like a joke in Punjab. They don’t ask you what you want to do after Class XII. They just ask, ‘When are you going to Canada to settle?’ We all go there to make a life, get a job, earn money. I was also about to go. And then my life changed.”Arshdeep Singh, the Punjab left-arm fast bowler, remembers having this hard conversation with his father in 2017. He had struggled to get opportunities in age-group cricket. Unsure if there was a future in the game, his father wanted Arshdeep to follow the footsteps of his older sibling, who had migrated to Brampton in Canada, first for academics and then to “settle”.Arshdeep mustered the courage to request his father for one year to make a life in cricket. And that year turned out to be memorable. It started with him finding a way into Punjab’s Under-19 squad on the back of some solid performances in district cricket. The crowning glory came in New Zealand, when he was part of India’s Under-19 World Cup-winning squad of 2018.”If I ever go to Brampton now, it’ll be for a holiday, not for anything else,” Arshdeep laughed.The last four months have been a “dream”, he said, fresh off a second IPL stint with Kings XI Punjab. Much like the dream of 2018. When he was part of a dressing room under Rahul Dravid, and “enjoyed the time of my life”.At the nets, Arshdeep received constant words of encouragement from Anil Kumble, the Kings XI head coach. He enjoyed time conversing with “Universe Boss” Chris Gayle, and got bowling tips from Mohammed Shami. On the field, he nailed yorkers in the final over to win a game, dismissing Rohit Sharma, Andre Russell and Manish Pandey with his variations among others.Overall, he played in eight out of the 14 league games for Kings XI, picking up nine wickets and conceding at 8.77 an over. His impact went beyond just the numbers though. A calm approach in the death overs, immaculate control in the middle overs, and the willingness to experiment with changes in pace all came in for special praise from several quarters.A rookie who hadn’t played much cricket – Arshdeep played only three first-class matches for Punjab last season – left a mark in a bowling line-up that had the likes of Shami, Chris Jordan and Sheldon Cottrell. His rise could also be gauged by how much more game-time he got – up from just three games in IPL 2019, under a different team management.So what changed?”Last year, they didn’t have a chance to look at me much,” Arshdeep said, when asked to compare his two IPL seasons. “I hadn’t played a lot of domestic cricket either. But I got some confidence when I did well for India Under-23 in the series against Bangladesh U-23 in Lucknow last year.

“If I don’t have that confidence in myself, then I’m not giving out good vibes for the team. So for me, however big the batsman was, my focus was on just getting my execution right.”ARSHDEEP SINGH

“That is when I got noticed, I guess. But this year, the month-long camp before the IPL really helped, because the coaching staff had enough time to look and assess every single player in the squad. I picked a lot of wickets in the practice games, so I guess it all started from there. Anil Kumble had told me before the season itself that I could get chances early and asked me to be ready. I carried the confidence of having bowled well in the nets and practice matches.”Arshdeep spent four months in lockdown training with his father, a former cricketer and a retired officer of the Central Industry Security Force (CISF), at their small home gym. Once restrictions were eased in Chandigarh, Arshdeep was a part of a training camp that Yuvraj Singh put together for the young Punjab players. At the time, it wasn’t yet confirmed if IPL 2020 would happen.Once at the IPL, he struck a very cordial rapport with Shami and Jordan. He used the time to talk to them about bowling. “Shami is a world-class bowler, and has a lot of experience that he is willing to pass on to the youngsters,” Arshdeep said. “Things like ‘How do you think when you’re under the pump?’ He told me my skill sets are good. He stressed on the need to back yourself under pressure and be mentally strong. He wanted me to work on my seam position, which he felt I could improve.”I still remember, in the game against Mumbai Indians, I was bowling the last over and Kieron Pollard hit me for two sixes. After that, he chatted with me and asked me to just back my execution and bowl my best ball, without looking at who the batsman was. He said, even if it went for sixes, it shouldn’t matter.”So did that help him change his mindset? “Yes. When I am bowling to a big player, I try to remain calm, remain blank. I don’t think of too many things. At the meeting, plans are discussed for different batsmen, so I try to follow that. It also depends on how the wicket is behaving. It’s a one-on-one battle, a coach or captain can’t do much, so I have to give them the confidence that I can do it.”If I don’t have that confidence in myself, then I’m not giving out good vibes for the team. So for me, however big the batsman was, my focus was on just getting my execution right. And if it didn’t come off, I wanted to ensure the next time I am in that position, I don’t repeat the same mistakes. You can’t be harsh on yourself, but you have to quickly learn.”Arshdeep bowls at 130 clicks, has the ability to swing the ball. Irfan Pathan’s hat-trick against Pakistan in 2006 is among his early memories of watching the game on TV. Pathan immediately became his idol. To hear his idol speak good words about his skillsets means a lot to Arshdeep. These days, he watches a lot of Mitchell Starc, even though his persona is very different to Starc’s.Arshdeep Singh celebrates after a key strike•BCCI”I’m working with my coach Jaswant Rai, looking to increase my pace,” he said. “I’m working on developing my arm speed and getting better rhythm in my run-up to help my consistency. I took a week off after the IPL, but since then, I’ve returned to training, trying to work up pace off a shorter run-up than what I’ve been used to. That is something Shami too said I could do if I made a few tweaks. So yes, generating faster arm-speed is something I am consciously working on.”Arshdeep is aware of where his game is at and knows what his priorities are. One of them is to “not lose sight” of the end goal, and “not get carried away by the IPL adulation” as a lot of his seniors and family have advised. On the field, he wants to make “history for Punjab” and knows it is well within his grasp if he can continue to take the kind of strides he has in recent times.”I want to be successful in red-ball cricket, and take Punjab to the Ranji Trophy knockouts first,” he says. “I don’t know when we last even won, so I want to be part of history. Take them to the knockouts and once there, maybe even a Ranji title. In white-ball cricket, I want to be consistent and be a dependable bowler.”Arshdeep isn’t much of a cricket watcher. He’d rather be out there playing. “I’ve only ever watched one game at the stadium,” he laughed. “It was a Champions League T20 game between Auckland Aces and Kings XI Punjab six years or so ago.”I used to watch a lot of hockey, though,” he said. “In Punjab, hockey is big and my dad used to take us to watch hockey games. I remember when we were four of us on a scooter. Me standing in front, dad riding, my sister and mum at the back. That time, my dad kept saying, ‘When you become big and do well in life, get a big car and we can all go and watch sport comfortably, I still remember.'”Arshdeep has now fulfilled that dream. He owns an SUV, a Toyota Fortuner. Drives to the stadium have gotten more comfortable, and now it’s the drive to succeed in all formats and, perhaps one day, play for the country that pushes him. And he now has all of this with his family’s support. Canada has well and truly been put on the back burner.

At the halfway stage of IPL 2021, only a few teams have been able to achieve clarity about their best XIs

Gaurav Sundararaman03-May-2021 17Traditionally Mumbai don’t make too many changes. In IPL 2020, Mumbai used just 15 players – the least in the tournament. Already this season, the defending champions have fielded 17 players. Chris Lynn and Marco Jansen had to start due to the non-availability of Quinton de Kock and Nathan Coulter-Nile. Chennai, where Mumbai played their first set of matches, did not suit their batting style and hence they had to make a couple of tactical changes. Jayant Yadav played when there were a lot of left-handed batters in the opposition and if the pitches were slow and taking spin. But, in Delhi, playing against the Super Kings, Mumbai strengthened their pace attack playing Dhawal Kulkarni and Jimmy Neesham. It has meant that Ishan Kishan, who hit a staggering 30 sixes last IPL, has had to sit out after struggling for form in the intial matches this season, but also to accommodate the extra Indian bowler. Kishan’s position has gone to Krunal Pandya, who has been given the new role of batting at No.4Points Table•ESPNcricinfo Ltd Delhi Capitals 17Delhi Capitals have mainly had to make a few forced changes. Indian bowling allrounder Axar Patel was indisposed recovering from Covid-19 and missed the first five matches. Patel’s return offset the absence of R Ashwin, who was forced to leave the tournament after five matches to attend to his family that had been enveloped by Covid-19. South African fast bowling pair of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje joined the IPL late while Indian pair of Amit Mishra and Ishant Sharma missed the first few matches recovering from niggles. Tactically Steven Smith for Ajinkya Rahane was one change and the Capitals have made. Nortje has been kept out thanks to the scintillating form of uncapped Indian fast man Avesh Khan, who is the second-highest wicket-taker this IPL at the halfway stage. Don’t fix what is not broken and expect the Capitals to persist with the winning combination. Punjab Kings Players used: 18Similar to the Royal Challenges, the Punjab Kings have also played at three venues. That has prompted tactical changes. Despite enduring his worst IPL with four ducks in six matches, West Indies powerhitter Nicolas Pooran was persisted with for the first seven matches. The bowling department was changed based on the opposition and venue. One curious move by the Kings has been the late introduction of Ravi Bishnoi, who sparkled in IPL 2020 with his attitude and his googlies. Expect the Kings to continue backing their core group of batters with changes in their bowling line up as they move towards Bangalore for their second half, which is very batting friendly. Sunrisers Hyderabad Players used: 21Sunrisers Hyderabad have had the worst start to the IPL since they entered the IPL in 2013. A solitary win in seven matches has meant they’re at the bottom of the points table. Desperation to win combined with injuries to key bowlers has resulted in several changes – 21, the most for a team this tournament so far. The franchise also took the bold move of dropping all-time Sunrisers and IPL great David Warner as captain and player in order to provide more balance to the team. What has also not helped is lack of swing in venues like Chennai as well as the fitness struggles of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and the knee surgery that ruled out T Natarajan. The team that has made the IPL play-offs consistently since 2016 has pressed the panic button and expect that extending to the second half of the IPL.

And why did Andre Russell bowl only two overs?

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Why did KKR bowl five straight overs of spin at the start?
Only once in the past had a team bowled five straight overs of spin to start an IPL innings. That was the Kolkata Knight Riders as well, back in 2014 against the Chennai Super Kings in Ranchi.Seven years later, it was once again the Knight Riders who went all-spin through the first five overs of an IPL innings. What might their thinking have been?A rare choice: spinners bowling first five overs of an IPL innings•ESPNcricinfoPart of the reason for this could have been Mumbai’s opening combination. In IPL matches since the start of 2019, Rohit Sharma had averaged 13.16 and struck at 98.75 against spin in the powerplay as against 41.33 and 131.44 against pace, before this game. In the same period, Quinton de Kock had managed a strike rate of only 101.65 against spin in the powerplay as compared to 149.85 against pace.Given this, the Knight Riders may have preferred having their spinners bowl as much as possible when one or both of the openers were in the middle, rather than later on, against Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard and Krunal Pandya, who are all fearsome six-hitters against spin.One other reason behind the Knight Riders front-loading with spin could have been the possibility of dew setting in as the evening progressed. The team may have decided to allow the spinners to bowl the bulk of their overs with a relatively dry ball, rather than come up against those middle-order six-hitters with their grip on the ball compromised.Why did Andre Russell only bowl two overs?
Andre Russell finished the innings with a five-wicket haul in only 12 balls, which may have left viewers wondering why the Knight Riders didn’t use him earlier.The answer lies in Russell’s creaking knees, which force the Knight Riders to use his bowling only sparingly and only seldom get four overs out of him. Even across two overs, though, he remains a valuable bowler at the death, as he showed today with his smart use of angles – around the wicket to right-hand batsmen and over the wicket to left-handers – to keep the ball away from the batsmen’s natural hitting arc and make it extremely difficult for them to access the leg side.Why did Rohit Sharma bowl the 14th over of KKR’s innings?
Rohit Sharma was once a fairly regular white-ball bowler, and even took an IPL hat-trick in 2009, but those days are long gone, thanks to injuries that have curtailed his bowling. So why did he bring himself on today, and bowl for the first time since IPL 2014?Given the turn on offer at Chepauk, and also the two-paced nature of the surface, Rohit may well have been mentally prepared to bowl even before the match began, to fulfill the role of Mumbai’s third spinner in case two left-handers were at the crease, given that both their frontline spinners turn the ball into the left-hander.When the 14th over began, the Knight Riders had two left-handers in the middle: a set Nitish Rana and a new-to-the-crease Shakib Al Hasan. Rohit came close to twisting his ankle before he’d even bowled his first ball, but he eventually managed to send down six reasonable deliveries, one of which nearly had Shakib inside-edging onto his stumps.The other reason Rohit bowled himself may have been to allow Krunal Pandya to come on when Dinesh Karthik and then Andre Russell came to the middle. On this slow turner, Russell in particular struggled to get to grips with Krunal’s changes of pace, and could have been out twice.Did Krunal deceive Shakib with his use of the crease?
The very best spinners defeat batsmen in the air with drift and dip, but sometimes you can beat a batsman for length by other means too. When Shakib swept Krunal straight into the hands of deep square leg in the 16th over of the Knight Riders innings, it appeared like a routine T20 dismissal – an aggressive shot not quite managing to evade a deep fielder.But replays suggested Krunal may have earned the wicket – at least partially – with a bit of trickery. Rather than releasing the ball as he normally would, Krunal delivered this one from well behind the crease, when he was roughly adjacent to the stumps. This may have caused Shakib to misjudge the length of the ball, and miscue his attempted sweep.Experts often talk about the use of the crease while bowling, but that’s usually restricted to the width of the crease. Krunal may well cause them to start talking about the use of its depth as well.

“Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya knocked on my door and gave me a big hug and they asked for a big treat”

Shashank Kishore18-Feb-2021K Gowtham, the offspin-bowling allrounder, had just landed in Ahmedabad with the Indian team and had settled into his hotel room when his name came up for bidding at the IPL 2021 auction. Having been released by the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) after just the one season, he was anxious, pacing up and down as the bids kept flying. By the end of it, after a tug of war, he was with the Chennai Super Kings, for INR 9.25 crore (US$ 1,273,000 approx.).That made him the most expensive uncapped Indian cricketer at an IPL auction, surpassing Krunal Pandya’s INR 8.8 crore by the Mumbai Indians in 2018.Related

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“It was nerve-wracking, I was very anxious, watching on TV,” Gowtham told ESPNcricinfo soon after he had found a new team. “We’d just landed in Ahmedabad and I’d just switched on the TV and my name came up. Emotions were changing every minute. Then, Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya knocked on my door and gave me a big hug and they asked for a big treat.”It was a very happy moment, we were all smiles, it was like having my family with me at that very moment. They were all so happy for me.”Gowtham’s base price was INR 20 lakh, and he was quickly the focus of a fierce bidding war between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Sunrisers Hyderabad, before the Super Kings swooped in with a late bid. Some 1400 kilometres away in Bengaluru, Gowtham’s parents and wife were on the other side of a video call soon after it was confirmed that he would be part of MS Dhoni’s team. “My parents had tears, happy tears,” Gowtham said. “It’s hard to describe that feeling. It’s all just sinking in. Obviously this isn’t the first time I’ve been part of the auction but every time your name comes up, the kind of butterflies in your tummy is unimaginable. So they were equally eager and anxious to see me. But I think towards the end, they were also very happy. I could see that.”

“I’ve managed to chat with him a couple of times, haven’t really had long chats, they have just been short and simple. I’m waiting to now join the set-up and have many fruitful conversations with him. It’s an exciting feeling to play for CSK”K Gowtham can’t wait to pick MS Dhoni’s brains

For Gowtham, being part of the Super Kings is thrilling enough, but playing under Dhoni “will be unbelievable”. Three years ago, he had queued up with a few other uncapped players to get his bat signed by Dhoni after an IPL game. It was somewhat like his first meeting Shane Warne, when he joined the Rajasthan Royals in 2018. When Warne linked up with the team, Gowtham expected nothing more than a few pleasantries. Instead, he was welcomed with “KG, you’re my spin project for this IPL!” With Dhoni, though, chats have so far been very limited, and he can’t wait for more.”The first time I met him, I asked MS what I needed to do to take my game to the next level,” Gowtham recalled. He can’t remember what Dhoni told him because he was so star-struck, but the autographed bat remains a prized possession. “It was a fanboy moment. After that, I’ve managed to chat with him a couple of times, haven’t really had long chats, they have just been short and simple. I’m waiting to now join the set-up and have many fruitful conversations with him. It’s an exciting feeling to play for CSK.”K Gowtham is currently with the Indian Test team as a net bowler•PTI The auction is the latest episode in what has been a massive surge in Gowtham’s career lately. At 32, he’s still uncapped, but continues to remain on the fringes of the Indian team. He’s currently a net bowler with the national team for the England Test series, and is an India A regular. At the IPL, he’s been part of the Royals for two seasons and had a very brief stint with the Punjab side – where he featured in just two games – before being released.”It was tough sitting out, yes there weren’t too many opportunities, but I tried to make the most of my time,” he said. “You’re in a bubble, you’re restricted in a way, you have just a few things to focus on and when you’re not playing it can get tough. But I worked on my fitness, worked hard on improving my skills in the nets and making the most of learning from Anil Kumble and other senior coaches so that I could be ready whenever the opportunities comes. That is the kind of person I am, you have to keep learning and improving every day.”His confidence and understanding of his game and circumstances is very different from five years ago, when he was full of self-doubt, not knowing if cricket would give him a proper chance. He had been reported for a suspect action that needed remodeling, he was not even deemed good enough to be part of his state team Karnataka when his bowling action was deemed legal. It hasn’t been easy, but he has made it work.”That’s the aim, keep giving your best. Every day is a new opportunity,” he said philosophically. “My aim is to be a better version of my previous self. Day by day, keep getting better. It’s just that simple.”

Seven members of England’s squad to face New Zealand have played five Tests or fewer

Alan Gardner31-May-2021James Bracey
Test caps: 0
A technically sound wicketkeeper-bat, Bracey has been winning positive reviews ever since being called up as part of last summer’s expanded training squad. Opening the batting in the first intra-squad match ahead of the West Indies Tests, he top-scored with 85 from 194 balls for Team Buttler and has been one of England’s reserve batters ever since, travelling with the team on tours to Sri Lanka and India and dutifully learning the ropes while spending almost 20 weeks in biosecure bubbles. It is as keeper that he is set to debut, following Ben Foakes’ untimely hamstring tear and England’s decision to look past recent IPL returnees Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow. Will be Gloucestershire’s first Test cricketer since Jon Lewis, now England’s elite bowling coach, played his only game against Sri Lanka 15 years ago.
Key stat: 45.66 – Bracey’s first-class average since the start of 2020
Ollie Robinson
Test caps: 0
Sussex’s spearhead is the most prolific fast bowler in English conditions over the last four seasons, and seemingly on the brink of winning his chance at the next level. Something of a wayward talent in his earlier years – he was sacked by Yorkshire as a 20-year-old – Robinson rebuilt his reputation down at Hove, working under the tutelage of Jason Gillespie. In the 2018 Championship, he claimed 74 wickets at 18.66, following that up with 63 at 16.44 in 2019, before going on to impress on the England Lions’ tour of Australia: Robinson’s match haul of 7 for 147 at the MCG helping set up a nine-wicket win over a strong Australia A side. He can bat, too, having scored a century from No. 9 on first-class debut, and comes into the series in fine form with the ball, his 29 wickets from five matches including a career-best 9 for 78 at Cardiff last month.
Key stat: 188 – no seamer has taken more first-class wickets in England since the start of 2018
Ollie Robinson claimed a career-best nine-for against Glamorgan earlier in the season•Getty ImagesOlly Stone
Test caps: 2
Injury-bedevilled at various stages of his career, Stone has emerged as the third prong among England’s genuine pace options – behind Jofra Archer and Mark Wood. Tall and rangy, Stone is capable of bowling 90mph and moving the ball both ways. He came through at Northamptonshire, debuting in the T20 side at 17 and going on to captain England Under-19s, then signed for Warwickshire in 2016, despite having his season ended prematurely by a cruciate ligament injury. Strong performances in 2018 led to inclusion on the winter tour to Sri Lanka, where he made his ODI debut, but he returned home early from the subsequent trip to the Caribbean after being diagnosed with a back stress fracture. Looked the part on Test debut against Ireland in 2019 before the back problem flared again, Stone impressed again on his return to England whites in Chennai earlier this year.
Key stat: 19.30 – Stone’s first-class bowling average for Warwickshire
Craig Overton
Test caps: 4
The older of the Overton twins by a matter of minutes, Craig was in the Somerset first team as an 18-year-old and soon making his mark as one of the country’s most-promising allrounders. First called into an England squad back in 2015, he featured regularly for the Lions and won inclusion in the touring party for the 2017-18 Ashes after a summer in which he claimed 46 Championship wickets at 22.39. Pitched into the fire in Adelaide, Overton showed his appetite for a fight by claiming Steven Smith as his maiden Test wicket and then top-scoring with 41 in England’s first innings. He kept his place for Perth but was then ruled out with a cracked rib. Further one-off Test appearances followed in Auckland and during the 2019 Ashes, but he has returned to contention after working to add extra pace to his bowling while maintaining control.
Key stat: 12.86 – Overton has the best bowling average of anyone to have taken more than one wicket in the County Championship this year
Dan Lawrence made a fifty on Test debut•SLCDan Lawrence
Test caps: 5
Prodigiously talented, Lawrence made headlines when scoring a County Championship hundred as a 17-year-old at The Oval in 2015 – and getting a handshake from Kevin Pietersen, no less – before going on to become a mainstay of the Essex side that won red-ball titles in 2017, 2019 and 2020. Like Robinson, it was on the 2019-20 England Lions tour of Australia that Lawrence really gave the talent ID men a nudge – an innings of 190 in a non-first-class match against Cricket Australia XI was followed by 125 against Australia A and the pink ball in the day-night unofficial Test. He proved himself at home in the senior England bubble last summer and, in the absence of Ollie Pope, was handed a Test debut in Galle, where a match tally of 94 runs, including a not out to steady a small chase, confirmed his readiness. India was a step up, but he finished the tour with another half-century in Ahmedabad.
Key stat: 73 – Lawrence’s maiden Test innings came as part of a century stand with Joe Root
Sam Billings
Test caps: 0
Kent’s captain and another among England’s glut of talented wicketkeeper-batters, Billings has been a regular in the white-ball set-up over the last six years without ever really sealing a spot as first choice. Came to attention via his explosive and innovative batting, winning ODI and T20I caps in 2015 under the new regime overseen by Trevor Bayliss and Eoin Morgan. Billings soon became a regular on the global T20 circuit, playing in the IPL, Big Bash and the PSL, while remaining on the fringes for England; he would likely have been in the squad for the 2019 World Cup but for a shoulder dislocation suffered at the start of the summer. Scored his maiden international hundred against Australia last year, and received his first Test call as back-up keeper to Bracey despite only recently emerging from quarantine after the IPL.
Key stat: 2 – Billings is one of only two men to have scored a hundred in each innings of a first-class match at Headingley
Haseeb Hameed has found his form (and grown his hair)•Getty ImagesHaseeb Hameed
Test caps: 3
When Hameed debuted as a 19-year-old in India on the 2016-17 tour, scoring an ice-cool 82 in the second innings at Rajkot, it was assumed England had found a Test opener who, in the Alastair Cook mould, would be ever-present for the next decade and more. However, a finger fracture ended his tour early, and while the search for a durable partner for Cook went on, Hameed suffered a drastic loss of form back with Lancashire. He managed just three fifties in the 2017 Championship, but even that was riches compared to the following summer, when he averaged 9.70 from 10 appearances with a top score of 31. Let go from Old Trafford, he signed for Nottinghamshire in 2019 and has quietly rebuilt his game – though the spotlight was quickly back on him after twin hundreds against Worcestershire in April. Called up as cover after Foakes’ injury, a Test return after four-and-a-half years away would be one for the romantics.
Key stat: 635 – number of balls Hameed faced at New Road, a Championship record

Farewell to a fine bowler who beat the bat more often than seemed reasonable, and came close to winning England the 1979 World Cup

Mark Nicholas29-Jul-2021Another one has gone: heroes all, but the class of ’81 are four short now of the 20 who represented England in six Ashes Test matches that summer. Exactly 40 years after the series, which became so widely known as Botham’s Ashes, Mike Hendrick has died of bowel and liver cancer. “Hendo” suffered awhile but never thought much of self-pity. His dry, midland wit remained intact to the end: “I’m in the departure lounge,” he said to Mike Atherton a month or so ago, “but the flight hasn’t left yet.”Atherton was talking to Hendrick for a fine piece in the that remembered and celebrated the men of that golden month in 1981 when England wrestled back consecutive Test matches from improbable positions and slam-dunked a third to secure the urn. Bob Willis, Graham Dilley and Bob Woolmer have already flown. Now the doors are closed and Hendrick is on his way to join them. He said to Atherton how players such as Geoffrey Boycott and David Gower stayed in touch throughout the period of his illness. “I have so many fond memories but rarely do they involve the wickets I took, more the team-mates and dressing rooms I played in. It was a special time.”At Willis’ passing, Paul Allott was by his side. They held hands as Bob Dylan’s “Positively 4th Street” accompanied Willis from this life to the next. For his article Atherton spoke to most of the players, some of whom, like Hendrick, played bit parts; others, like Botham, stole the show. Mike Brearley was recalled after Botham was sacked from the captaincy, and Brearley worked his magic, which, in essence, was to get the mighty allrounder back on course. The affection they have for one another remains to this day. “It’s curious isn’t it,” mused Brearley, “You go through something together. It’s an arduous thing, a Test match or a Test series. It can be an anxious, nervous time and if it goes well, you experience great elation together. It’s the sporting equivalent of falling in love in some ways. I see my old team-mates now and find we start making the same jokes from 40 years ago as if it were yesterday.” Such bonds cannot be broken.Related

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Hendrick played the first and last Tests of the series, thus missing the heady drama that captivated the nation. In the first Test, at Trent Bridge, he had Allan Border dropped by Paul Downton, and somehow both men then lost their places for it. The invitation for Hendrick to play again, which came from the Test and County Cricket Board and was posted to Derbyshire County Cricket Club – as was the tradition of the day – and intercepted by the Derbyshire secretary at the request of the chairman of selectors, who had changed his mind overnight upon hearing that Willis had recovered from illness. You’d call that unlucky.As you would his bowling, which beat the bat more often that was reasonable. He bowled a perfect line and length at a strong, bouncy fast-medium pace and hit the seam with legendary consistency, often admitting that he didn’t know which way it would go – “Which isn’t a bad thing, because if I don’t know, the batsman sure doesn’t either!” The general view was that the endless jaffas he propelled at mystified opponents were a tad too short to find the edge of the bat. As each was gloved by Bob Taylor, Hendo’s hangdog expression would lengthen with the shadows of the day.On occasions he was unplayable, not least after he had left Derbyshire in 1981 to join Nottinghamshire. Clive Rice, the no-nonsense South African whose captaincy helped to secure the Championship title for Notts in the early 1980s, demanded green pitches at Trent Bridge so that his seam attack of Richard Hadlee, the Kevins Cooper and Saxelby, Rice himself and Hendo could do their worst. Hampshire were bowled out for 70 and 56 there in 1982: Hadlee took 7 for 25 in the first innings and Hendo 5 for 21 in the second. Between them, they took 15 for 81 the match, and really, I don’t know how we made the 81. I do, though, remember the endless playing and missing, or should I say groping in the dark, which eventually became almost funny.

An insight into a legendary career.

In his last recorded interview, Mike Hendrick looked back at his time with #DCCC.

Full interview https://t.co/vbA73i7jia pic.twitter.com/4MqeYqNZsS

— Derbyshire CCC (@DerbyshireCCC) July 27, 2021