Return from purgatory
After a winter of purgatory, Graham Thorpe is on the comeback trail, making regular runs in the County Championship, and inching ever closer to an England recall
As far as my England place is concerned, I'd like to think I've been there or thereabouts all season. I've been a little unfortunate with injuries - I've had a back problem for a couple of weeks, and that flared up three or four days ago just as they were picking the Trent Bridge squad - but as long as I keep scoring runs for my county, I'll keep myself hovering at the door.
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Graham Thorpe contemplates the future |
You look like a man who's enjoying his cricket again.
Yeah, definitely. My first task this season was to get back in tune mentally, and once that was sorted, the technical side of my game would hopefully fall into place. I hadn't played any form of cricket for eight months, so really all my energies were concentrated on the domestic game. I'll come to international cricket as and when.
We'll see. From my own perspective, what happened to me last year was not a cricket issue but a life issue. I had a hell of a lot to come to terms with, and at the end of the day I was unable to focus on club cricket, let alone first-class or international. Whether right or wrong, it certainly wasn't a difficult decision to make. But on a personal note, things have since happened off the field which have brought some stability back to my life.
I really hope not. I've committed a decade of my life to Test cricket, and anyone with a sensible brain will understand that what happened to me this year was beyond my control. Every move I had to make was made in haste, and I was confused, with no clear understanding of the right thing to do. I guess that's the price you pay for having a life that's played out in front of the media.
Well, I'd been out of the scene all winter, so I don't know the full tale, but clearly Nasser realised what was the right thing for him. He's been a good leader for England, and served his country well in some tough times. When he and Duncan Fletcher took over, England was a struggling and disjointed side, with no clear direction. He turned that around, but now it seems he feels the time is right for a change.
I'm sure that Michael will be of the opinion that if you're good enough, age should be no stumbling block. Of course he'll have one eye on the future - new captains tend to be like that - but you only have to look at the example of Alec Stewart, a great England player all through his thirties and even into his forties.
That option is available. But then again, no matter how focused you are, you can't play on indefinitely if your body won't stand up to it. I mean, this season, I was all set, and then I suffered my back spasm. It's a reminder that age catches up with us all. But on the other side of the coin, you can't worry about such misfortunes. There's no point in dwelling. Life moves on.
I have fantastic memories of that whole Asia trip, not just Sri Lanka, and if I get back into the team, it would be wonderful. The Caribbean [in March] is enticing as well. I have fond memories of my two previous tours, where the cricket is always competitive and the population are so enthusiastic. But it's pretty much fingers crossed until then.
I'm not looking that far ahead. At the moment I'm taking my cricket week by week. Maybe once upon a time I was, like, "I wanna do this, I wanna do that", but I view things differently now. These days, my only ambition is to stay fit, get runs on the board for my county, and hope that the selectors put their faith in me again.