He made an excellent double century earlier in the season, but even then it was clear that he was moving far from easily. He seemed laboured in his footwork, both forward and back, while his running between the wickets was understandably slow. Had he been fully fit he would have been a good option for one day cricket, but that was something his back never allowed.
With his contract up at the end of this season, I had concerns over whether it would be renewed, especially when he had missed so much cricket over his two seasons with the county.
He will be a long time retired, like any sports person. Doing so now enables him to hopefully get the problem sorted, then move into his next career.
I wish him well. My favourite innings was that played at Durham last season, when he made 99 in challenging conditions before falling leg before to Ben Raine. It showed that he had the talent but that problematic back never allowed him to show Derbyshire supporters his very best form on a consistent basis.
I wish him well in his future endeavours and thank him for his best efforts.
For Derbyshire, the reshaping of the squad for next season will commence in earnest.
A real shame for the player and the club as he was clearly a very good batter when fit, though not sure we ever saw him fully free of the effects of injury. Wish him all the best for the future.
ReplyDeleteVery important to find a replacement who is hopefully equally talented and in the same age bracket or younger but has better fortune with injury to boost our batting depth which has been sorely tested this season.
I was so optimistic when we signed him that he was a guy who'd be the backbone of our middle order for years to come.
ReplyDeleteSadly he was always either injured or playing through it. We saw glimpses of what could have been. It’s sad to see his career cut so short.
This is a real shame for the player and the club. When we signed him, he seemed like the obvious number five for some years to come and a key player in Mickey Arthur’s plans. A quality player and it’s sad but alas not able to continue. Wishing him all the best for the future! And it just points out how urgent the need is for us to find a new number five. We don’t have anyone good enough there at the moment.
ReplyDeleteAndy T Cleckheaton