The deal, which will see him remain with the county until at least the end of the 2022 season, is one which was hoped for, but there is always concern that the circling wolves might come in with a 'better' offer. It doesn't always work out so, of course, and the club's history of the past 25 years contains more players whose best days were with us than those who went elsewhere to better things.
At 23 Matt Critchley has time on his side to make such a move in the future, but he has the opportunity to fully realise his undoubted talent with the county that gave him opportunity. Watching from the boundary edge and from afar, I got the impression that Matt wanted to be part of a stable, positive environment that could enable his cricket to kick on to the level that we all know it can be. Prior to the arrival of Dave Houghton, who has created one that is massively appreciated by all of the players, things changed too much for the development of a young player of talent. There was no consistency in coaching, too great a turnover of them and a spell where they were left to their own devices, to some extent.
That works for some players, but others need that coaching input to set them on the right road again, when things get tough. Houghton has created an excellent group of coaches and it is no coincidence that we looked a very good side for a lot of last summer. Yes, there are still days when the intensity dropped and the performance suffered, but in having a small first team squad, everyone knew that opportunity would come their way. With such positivity generally comes productivity.
The club has been good to him. There have been spin clinics with Shane Warne, trips to India, the recruitment of bowlers like Tahir and Mendis to learn from. He has travelled to Australia to work on his game there with Stuart MacGill, who earlier this year said he rated him highly and backed him to play for England.
He is a very good cricketer who will undoubtedly get better still. As a bowler he is developing a lovely loop to his leg spin, which proved a very valuable asset in last year's T20 campaign. He also has a greater accuracy, without which the art can be an expensive one. As a fielder he is excellent, while his batting will come again after challenges. He isn't always the best starter of an innings, but I watched a knock of both charm and class at Chester-le-Street last summer which confirmed his ability as a genuine all rounder. He may not open in T20 cricket these days, as he did with success as a designated pinch-hitter, but he has the power and timing to add crucial late innings 'oomph' in one-day cricket, as well as being able to rebuild should it be required. I have every confidence that he will add to his three first-class centuries in the not too distant future, a stronger batting unit giving him better situations in which to arrive at the crease.
Above all he is a lovely lad. He pays tribute to the support of 'coaches, players and supporters' in today's press release and to that positive environment at the club.
I am thrilled to bits with this announcement and look forward to seeing his continued development at the county in the years ahead.
Great news again from the Club. Keep the good news of recent weeks coming!!
ReplyDeleteGareth
Very pleasing. I was confident he would as I think the stability we offer both professionally and personally are a major plus if we were able to be 'there or thereabouts' with the money that his talent and efforts deserve.
ReplyDeleteNot sure where he lives, but get the impression that he's happily settled personally with his partner and is surrounded by good people at his club.
Notts seem to have signed enough players now and with Covid perhaps impacting the abilities of bigger (but less profitable) clubs to entice with the cash I think the timing was probably good for us to tie him up.