From repairing roads to building bridges: Jack Burnham battles back after drugs ban

Three drug busts for cocaine use in one season was certainly going some. By the end of the 2017 summer, Jack Burnham's cricket career hung by a thread. One of England's most highly-rated young batsmen was in danger of being lost to the game.

Now Burnham nets with Durham again, in readiness for the start of the county season. That should be enough to make everybody euphoric. Without an artificial stimulant in sight.

Burnham has sought acceptance again in the accustomed manner for a working-class north-eastern lad. Not by highfalutin speeches or grandiose gestures, but by hard graft.

If you're in a hole don't keep digging, they say. Burnham did the opposite. There are some roads and kerbs in the north-east that look a little smarter after a year of 5.30am alarm calls.

"This time last year I was labouring for one of my mates," he said. "He had his own company. I was doing block work, roads, kerbs, everything. It was hard work. After it all happened, I just thought I needed to do something to keep working and keep myself going. Long jobs, long days. It was a massive eye opener, seeing how lucky and privileged I am to have had this opportunity.

"I did a little bit of work when I first left school, building work. But in all honesty I did get sucked into this life, this Good Life. To go away and see what other people have to do to make the money to get by in life was a big eye-opener.

"I'm going to work as hard as I can with my cricket, make as much money and play as many games around the world that I can. But it has also made me realise, now I have developed skills outside of cricket, that if cricket doesn't work, I have options."

But there is a deeper element to his recovery than mere physical exertion. He has hinted at "bottling things up since childhood". With that emotional honesty comes a greater prospect of putting his bad times behind him.

His mother responded to his fall from grace with a combination of plain speaking and emotional support. For the time being, he is living at home again, determined that there will be no relapse.

"I've just recently done my mam's garden. I put a new patio in for her and then a little garden for the flowers," he said. "To have those skills, to be able to do things apart from cricket, was quite nice."

Burnham has a Level 2 coaching badge and has plans to take a Level 3 this winter unless overseas trips get in the way. With the help of the PCA, he can speak to a counsellor in Nottinghamshire or on Face Time chat. He has embraced a range of coping mechanisms to try to keep his career on an even keel.

What studies exist are equivocal about the benefits of cocaine for an athlete. Although it is a stimulant, the illusion of better performance is not necessarily backed up by actuality. And it should be fairly observed that Burnham's reliance on this illegal, Class-A stimulant was far from unique: the Sunday Telegraph reported last month after testing the Wembley toilets that cocaine use was at an "alarming" level among the crowd for England's opening European Championship match against the Czech Republic.

But sport sets a higher bar for its athletes and the ECB is committed to ensuring that cricket is a drug-free sport. All recreational drugs are outlawed irrespective of performance advantages, with health a prime motivation.

To comply with WADA international standards, it operates a strong in- and out-of-competition anti-doping testing programme which is conducted by the UK Anti-Doping agency (UKAD). Any cricketer can be tested anytime, anywhere.

To be sure of achieving such a lifestyle consistently, Burnham has had to make difficult decisions. He has broken up with his girlfriend and is no longer as reliant on his childhood friends. He knows he needs to move in different circles.

"I have had to make a lot of sacrifices with my friendship groups and things I was doing," he said. "But the help I have had from the club and everyone around me, supporting me, it has been hard but good. It was tough moving away, it was like starting again, but I knew I was doing it for the right reasons. I moved house, I moved village."

Durham were entitled to sack him - and many counties would have done. Under ECB rules, they had to keep his failed drugs tests confidential on the first two occasions, but on the third occasion they were free to do as they please.

But he has been at the county since the age of seven and his emergence as a player of international potential was a source of great pride - in Bangladesh three years ago, he broke Alastair Cook's England run-scoring record in an Under-19 World Cup.

"At one point I thought that was it with cricket, I'd ruined every opportunity I had," he reflected. "But the support and help that the club has given me is very appreciated. To be here now, going into a season, fit, strong, having this opportunity again is just amazing."

He hasn't always been a hard trainer, far from it. There were times when he perhaps got more licence than he should. But his commitment in the long pre-season has been exemplary. He looks fitter than at any time in his life. He knows that regaining respect will not happen overnight.

Marcus North, Durham's new director of cricket, judges: "Jack Burnham has been outstanding. He has gone through a very difficult period in his life, has had 12 months to reflect and work really hard on himself away from cricket due to the ban.

"He has done more than we have asked of him, he is one of the fittest in the squad and his work ethic is exceptional. He is a real raw talent. We are really excited what the future holds for Jack."