Usman on the up

It may have been a small milestone but its significance will not have been lost on the club's supporters. On June 16 it was 10 years since a player from the Tudor Rose county played Test cricket for England. In that time there have been a few near misses - spin twins Graeme Swann and Jason Brown have both toured - but Paul Taylor's appearance against New Zealand at Lord's remains the last time an England selector looked up the Wantage Road telephone number.

Usman Afzaal already knows what it is like to be thrust into the international limelight. His brief association with England ended two winters ago amid mutterings about his attitude and poor fitness level. But Afzaal is settling in well at his new county with one hundred and four fifties to his name before the start of June. The reason for his renewed vigour? The management of Kepler Wessels.

"He is a straight down the line kind of a guy," Afzaal says. "I'm very willing to learn and he is the type of coach who is with you 24/7. This club is like a family and I enjoy walking into the dressing room."

Afzaal has bought a flat close to the ground and even put on hold his Bollywood ambitions in a bid to concentrate on his game. "It is nice people want me to do things in India but I want to put my whole heart into cricket and things like Bollywood can wait."

Moment of the month David Sales enforcing the follow-on against county champions Sussex - a rare luxury indeed.